Aug 19, 2023; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; A Pittsburgh Steelers helmet sits on the sidelines against the Buffalo Bills at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports.
The Pittsburgh Steelers are expected to win 8.5 games this season inside the ultra-competitive AFC North, the same win forecast accompanying the Minnesota Vikings into 2023.
And when Mike Tomlin’s squad gets the show on the road in two weeks, it will do so without a former Vikings wide receiver and special teamer — Dan Chisena.
Pittsburgh chopped a handful of players in anticipation of Tuesday’s 53-man roster trimdown deadline, and Chisena was on the list. KPRC2’s Aaron Wilson tweeted Sunday, “Steelers released Dan Chisena, Nevelle Clark, Aron Cruickshank, Kuony Deng, Madre Harper, James Nyamwaya, B.T. Potter, Forrest Rhyne, Rex Sunahara.”
Without Chisena, 26, the Steelers WR room looks like this as of August 27th:
Chisena joined the Steelers in January, so his stay lasted about seven months. One of the fastest players on the Vikings since the start of 2020, Minnesota welcomed Chisena via undrafted free agency in April of 2020. The Penn State alumnus played in all 12 of the Nittany Lions games as a senior and caught three passes for 66 yards. With the Vikings, Chisena was renowned for special teams.
Chisena participated in 27 Vikings games from 2020 to 2022, with 496 snaps on special teams and 11 on offense. He was showcased much more frequently with the Mike Zimmer brand of Vikings on special teams but was retained via practice squad last August when the team shaved the roster to 53 players.
In 2022 with Kevin O’Connell in charge, Chisena’s special teams role was clearly diminished, seeing action on just 24 plays early in the season in games against the Chicago Bears and Washington Commanders. After that activation from the practice squad, that was it for Chisena on the active roster.
The former Nittany Lion is known for speed, speed, and more speed, logging a 4.32 forty-yard dash during the buildup to the 2020 NFL Draft. He was teammates with Saquon Barkley, Mike Gesicki, Micah Parsons, and Miles Sanders at Penn State.
The Steelers still employ four former Vikings: Mason Cole (C), Patrick Peterson (CB), Chandon Sullivan (CB), and Armon Watts (DT).
Pittsburgh opens the 2023 season at home in 13 days against the San Francisco 49ers.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sal Spice. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band).
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.