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Cardinals Take Close Look at Ex-Steelers Punter
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- Cardinals Take Close Look at Ex-Steelers Punter
Steelers punter Pressley Harvin III against the 49ers, Sept. 10, 2023 - Ed Thompson / Steelers Now
A former punter of the Pittsburgh Steelers could soon have a new home in the NFL.
The Arizona Cardinals worked out former Pittsburgh Steelers punter Pressley Harvin III on Tuesday, according to NFL insider Aaron Wilson of Houston's KPRC2 .
#Cardinals worked out Luke Basso, Tyler Duzansky, Jamie Gillan, Pressley Harvin
— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) October 20, 2026
Harvin, 28, was with the San Francisco 49ers for a brief time in August 2024, but he was waived after two weeks. San Francisco signed Harvin because Mitch Wishnowsky was dealing with knee irritation, so the team was using him just as a camp leg.
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Harvin, a seventh-round selection out of Georgia Tech by the Steelers in 2021, was released in February 2024 after a tumultuous three-year tenure. He could just never remain consistent.
In his post-season debriefing, former Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin mentioned that Harvin had not met their standards.
"You know, I'll acknowledge that Pressley wasn't consistent enough, particularly down the stretch," Tomlin said .
Pittsburgh Steelers punter Pressley Harvin III against the Cincinnati Bengals, Dec. 23, 2023 – Ed Thompson / Steelers Now
Harvin's flat punts left the team out to dry. He was consistently outdueled each week against opponents, putting an already struggling offense in even tougher spots when the field position battle gets so lopsided and opposing offenses start on short fields.
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He had the second-worst yards per punt in 2023 at just 43.8 yards and his struggles against the Buffalo Bills in the Wild Card loss were the last straw, as Harvin put the team on multiple short fields throughout the game.
A mere 38.5 punt average led Harvin to one of his most lackluster career showings. For a team that has played the field position game so strongly, having a subpar punter is a big deal, especially when they invested a draft pick in Harvin.
In 2022, Harvin finished 19th in the NFL in net punting average at 41.1, a three-yard improvement over his rookie season, and his 137 total return yards was the second-fewest among regular punters.
However, his gross average was just 44.5, or 28th in the league, because of too few short kicks off the side of his foot. And that took a step back in 2023, leading to the Steelers to part ways.
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Chris Ward contributed.
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