After three years with the Pittsburgh Steelers, S Damontae Kazee is leaving the team. He’s signing with the Cleveland Browns, per Mike Garafolo of NFL Media. Terms of the deal have not yet been reported.
Signed in April 2022, Kazee dealt with an injury and suspension that limited him to nine games in 2022. He had two interceptions, including one in his team debut against the New Orleans Saints in Week 10. He entered 2023 as Pittsburgh’s third safety behind Minkah Fitzpatrick and Keeanu Neal. He wound up playing in 14 games with nine starts, but he was suspended for the last three games of the regular season after a hit to the head of Indianapolis Colts WR Michael Pittman Jr. He totaled another two interceptions to go along with 61 tackles in 2023.
The Steelers signed S DeShon Elliott to start alongside Minkah Fitzpatrick ahead of last season, and Kazee started just one game. He had an interception in Week 2 against the Denver Broncos, but finished the season with just 31 total tackles and two passes defensed.
He did offer some special teams value with 264 total special teams snaps during his time in Pittsburgh, but it wasn’t a core part of his game. With the Steelers signing S Juan Thornhill to serve as a backup safety, the writing was on the wall for Kazee to leave and sign elsewhere.
Prior to his stint with Pittsburgh, Damontae Kazee spent four years with the Atlanta Falcons and one with the Dallas Cowboys. Kazee led the league with seven interceptions in 2018, his second season after being a fifth-round pick in the 2017 NFL Draft by Atlanta.
With Kazee now gone, the Steelers will likely move forward with Fitzpatrick, Elliott, Thornhill and UDFA Sebastian Castro in the room. The Steelers and Browns essentially swapped safeties in free agency, with Thornhill spending the past two seasons in Cleveland, starting 11 games in both 2023 and 2024. Kazee has a chance to push for a starting job in Cleveland.
He’s the second former Steeler to head to the Browns in recent weeks, as the team also signed WR Diontae Johnson to a one-year deal on April 28.
