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Steelers sign ILB Bostic to two-year deal

By Jim Wexell for The 3 min read

Has Mike Tomlin been talking to Maurkice Pouncey again?

Probably not about Jon Bostic, whom the Steelers signed to a two-year contract this weekend.

Bostic, briefly a teammate of Pouncey’s at Florida, played with Marcus Gilbert as an inside linebacker in 2010 and became second-team All-SEC in 2012.

The 6-1, 245-pound Bostic, who’ll turn 27 in May, was drafted in the second round of the 2013 draft by the Chicago Bears (50th pick) but has since bounced to four other teams while being plagued by injuries.

Bostic played in 16 games as a rookie, with nine starts, and made what’s so far been his only career interception to go along with 57 tackles in 2013.

In 2014, Bostic started eight games and made 83 tackles before he was traded to the New England Patriots for a sixth-round pick prior to the 2015 season.

Hobbled by an ankle injury, Bostic played in 11 games (one start) for the Patriots and was traded to the Detroit Lions in 2016 for a seventh-round draft pick.

Bostic sat out the 2016 season with a foot injury and then signed with the Indianapolis Colts before last season. He made 14 starts for the Colts and had a career-high 97 tackles before going on injured reserve with a right knee injury late last season.

Bostic, the son of former Lions defensive back John Bostic (1985-87), was born in Atlanta, but the family moved to Wellington, Florida, after his father earned a PhD in Pharmacy.

Bostic was awarded a scholarship to Florida in January of 2009 and moved into the lineup the following fall. He started 32 games at inside linebacker for the Gators from 2010-12 and finished with five career interceptions, 7.5 sacks and 219 tackles.

Draft analysts considered Bostic to be an athletic “knee-bender” who was more finesse than physical. He has long 33-inch arms and ran his Combine 40 in 4.61 seconds with an outstanding 3-cone time of 6.99 to put a stamp on his athleticism and flexibility. Bostic also put up 22 bench reps.

If Bostic passes Monday’s physical with the Steelers, he’ll be expected to compete with Tyler Matakevich and Vince Williams for the two inside jobs left open following Ryan Shazier’s tragic spinal cord injury late last season.

Bostic has been a signal-caller at many of his stops, and communication issues were one of the Steelers’ defensive problems following Shazier’s injury.

Bostic was the first free agent signed by the Steelers, who entered the market with roughly $6.5 million in available cap space. Terms of the contract have not been announced.

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