The Pittsburgh Steelers have brought in some competition for the starting punter position. According to the NFL transaction report, the Steelers claimed former New York Jets punter Braden Mann off waivers.
Mann was a sixth-round pick in 2020 after winning the Ray Guy Award while at Texas A&M. Mann has been the Jets punter for the last three seasons. In 2022 he averaged 46.9 yards per punt. By comparison, Steelers starting punter Pressley Harvin III averaged 44.5 yards per punt.
Harvin has not been as good as expected since the Steelers drafted him in 2021 but it is hard to imagine Mann is going to be a marked improvement. Nevertheless, the team always needs to bring two punters into offseason workouts and if it creates some competition and pushes Harvin, it’s a positive.
The Steelers have claimed P Braden Mann off of waivers from the Jets.
— Field Yates (@FieldYates) April 14, 2023