Dean

Lowry

Holcomb suffered a devastating knee injury in Week 9 of last season, ending his 2023 campaign. It’s no surprise to see him open camp on the PUP list, given the nature of his injury, but we don’t have a firm timeline on when we can expect him to return. Speaking earlier in the week, head coach Mike Tomlin said he thinks Holcomb will participate in camp sooner than later, leaving the door open for a return in a few weeks. In addition to Holcomb, the Steelers also placed EDGE Dean Lowry, whose 2023 was ended by a pectoral injury.

With Russell Wilson and Justin Fields already on the roster, Allen won’t be competing for anything more than a QB3 spot — and that’s assuming the Steelers opt to keep three quarterbacks on their 53-man roster. Allen has started 19 games in his career and has thrown for 4,734-26-21 across 30 career games. He’s thrown only 184 regular season passes since 2020. In addition to Allen, the Steelers also signed defensive end Dean Lowry, who has totaled 15.5 sacks over his eight-year career.

The longtime Packers starter was more of a rotational piece his first year in Minnesota before suffering a torn pec. He appeared in only nine games. The move creates over $2 million in cap space. Lowry turns 30 in June. He could have trouble landing guaranteed money on the open market.

Lowry has played in nine games for the Vikings, starting four. The veteran defensive end is in the first year of a two-year contract signed earlier this offseason and has totaled 14 tackles on the year and no sacks. We’ll see if the Vikings opt to bring him back after an underwhelming 2023 campaign. They can cut him for just $2.4 million in dead cap.

Lowry signed a three-year extension with the Packers in 2019. He struggled to produce in his first year on the new deal but rebounded with 8.5 sacks over the following two years. His numbers fell again in 2022. He was credited with .5 sacks and a single tackle for loss while playing a reduced role for the team. The Packers let him walk, but the Vikings are clearly betting on their ability to get him back to form. With Brian Flores as their new defensive coordinator, that may not be a bad bet to make.

ESPN’s Field Yates reports $3.11M of Lowry’s $4.1M salary has been converted into a signing bonus. The move creates $2.488M in cap space for Green Bay. Observers might see Lowry’s contract restructuring as one of several moves needed to acquire Julio Jones in the coming weeks. No. 137 overall pick of the 2016 draft, Lowry recorded 19 QB pressures and three sacks last year. Pro Football Focus graded him as the 92nd best pass rushing DL in 2020.

The No. 137 overall pick of the 2016 draft, Lowry was headed into the final season of his rookie deal. He has seen his playing time expand each of the past two years, peaking with 697 snaps in 2018. He made eight starts, logging three sacks and a forced fumble. Lowry has earned positive marks from Pro Football Focus each of his three seasons. 2019 will be his age-25 campaign.

Lowry is a high-energy worker along the defensive front and gets by with a non-stop motor. He’ll compete for sub-package snaps in year one.

Lowry (6'6/296) was a three-year starter for the Wildcats, amassing 31.5 career tackles for loss and 12.5 sacks before earning second-team All-Big Ten as a senior. Lowry helped himself in Indy, running 4.87 with a 32 1/2-inch vertical and 30 reps on the bench. A high-energy down lineman, Lowry lacks edge burst and needs to improve his pad level, but he offers five-technique potential with a power game and efficient tackling, also making plays in pursuit. Lowry could eventually become a Jared Crick type.

A fourth-rounder out of Northwestern last year, Lowry has started 10 games this season and had arguably his best game as a pro last Sunday against the Bucs. He played 50% of the snaps and registered a sack, pair of hurries, and returned a Jameis Winston fumble 62 yards for a touchdown.