Former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Deon Cain is back in the UFL after two stints with the Buffalo Bills and another with the Carolina Panthers this past season. Cain has re-signed with the Birmingham Stallions of the UFL, his third season with the two-time reigning spring league champions.
Cain, 28, signed with the Bills just one day before the joint practice between Pittsburgh and Buffalo at Acrisure Stadium this August. He did not play in the preseason game between the Steelers and Bills that week, but did appear in Buffalo's preseason finale against the Carolina Panthers on Aug. 24, when he caught all three targets for 28 yards.
Cain was released by the Bills in their final cut-down to 53 players on Aug. 30. He caught on with the Carolina Panthers, spending six weeks on their practice squad. He was cut by the Panthers on Oct. 15 without having appeared in a game. The Bills re-signed him to their practice squad on Oct. 31, but was again released on Dec. 3.
Cain spent the 2019 and 2020 seasons with the Steelers. A 6-foot-2, 202-pound Clemson alum, he was a sixth-round pick of the Indianapolis Colts in 2018. Cain spent a season and a half there before the Steelers signed him off the Indianapolis practice squad in 2019.
Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Deon Cain (17) trains at Heinz Field during the Steelers 2020 Training Camp, Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2020 in Pittsburgh, PA. (Karl Roser / Pittsburgh Steelers)
Cain played six games down the stretch run of that season with the Steelers, making three starts. He caught five passes for 72 yards. He returned to the Steelers in 2020, spending most of the season on the practice squad, but was elevated for the team's Week 6 and Week 17 games.
Despite enduring through a number of transactions and three stints in spring football, that currently represents Cain's last NFL regular-season action.
The Steelers let Cain's contract expire for 2021, and he signed with the Baltimore Ravens , but was placed on injured reserve. He was released with an injury settlement and caught on with the Philadelphia Eagles , where he spent the remainder of the 2021 season and all of the 2022 season.
Former Pittsburgh Steelers and current Birmingham Stallions WR Deon Cain after winning the USFL Championship Game MVP Award in Canton, Ohio on July 1, 2023. — Andre Swinton / Steelers Now
Cain's first foray into spring football came in 2023, when he played with the Birmingham Stallions, then in the USFL, and was named the USFL Championship Game MVP while leading the Stallions to a title.
He was with the Eagles for a second time in the 2023 offseason, but was cut coming out of camp and again played with Birmingham last spring, winning a title in the UFL, which was formed in 2024 out of a merger of the USFL and XFL.
Cain had his best spring league numbers yet in 2024. He caught 33 passes for 436 yards and three touchdowns over 10 regular-season games with the Stallions, and added four catches for 25 yards in two playoff games.
The Stallions feature fellow former Steelers T.J. Carter, Nevelle Clarke , Tae Crowder , Carlos Davis , Christian DiLaurio, Madre Harper , Jarron Jones , Tre Norwood , Kenny Robinson , Jace Sternberger and Kyahva Tezino.
The 2025 UFL season will kick off on March 28, again featuring eight teams and a 10-week regular season, leading up to the second UFL Championship on June 14.
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