Former Buffalo Bills captain returns to Pittsburgh on one-year deal

The Buffalo Bills released several veterans as salary cap casualties early last offseason and linebacker Tyler Matakevich was one of them.

More than four months later, Matakevich is back where his NFL career began. The special teams ace has signed a one-year deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers, who were responsible for selecting the Temple product with the 246th overall pick in 2016.

Matakevich, 31, spent his first four professional seasons with the Steelers, totaling 63 appearances as a special team player. He joined the Bills in 2020 and went on to play 66 games over four seasons.

Matakevich played just 143 defensive snaps during his time in Buffalo, but he was on the field on special teams nearly 80 percent of the time. He was a team captain representing the specialists multiple times.

In 2023, Matakevich played in all 17 games and totaled seven tackles, including four on special occasions. He saw just 16 snaps at linebacker. The former seventh-round draft pick had 55 tackles and one interception during his time with the Bills.

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Buffalo used a fifth-round draft pick on Washington linebacker Edefuan Ulofoshio as a potential replacement for Matakevich. Meanwhile, the Bills signed two former Steelers this offseason, bringing in quarterback Mitchell Trubisky and wide receiver Chase Claypool.

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