As he walked into the defensive line meeting room soon after officially re-signing with the Pittsburgh Steelers on Saturday morning, Breiden Fehoko was booed.
It was good-natured ribbing by his ex- (and now again) teammates — but it could have been because Fehoko was barely recognizable after losing so much weight since the last time he was a Steeler.
Fehoko, who is in his third stint with the Steelers over the past three seasons, trimmed down over the offseason and said he reported to Saint Vincent at 290 pounds.
For a player whose reputation is as a nose tackle, that’s quite slim.
“Two years ago when I first got to Pittsburgh Steelers, I was this submarine plugger,” Fehoko said. “I could barely move side to side. And now my body feels great. I feel so much more leaner. I feel like I can run a 10K, not figuratively speaking. I feel great. I feel like I’m in the best shape of my life, and I’m just ready to be a need for the Steelers wherever they need me.”
Fehoko was signed after a trio of injuries struck the Steelers’ D-line during the first day of padded camp practice Thursday. He takes the roster spot of veteran Dean Lowry, who was placed on season-ending injured reserve because of a knee injury.
Though Fehoko has never appeared in a regular-season game for the Steelers, he has signed with them in 2023, 2024 and 2025. Most of that time while the regular season was being played, Fehoko was on the practice squad. He does have some tenure on the 53-man roster, however.
Fehoko, who turns 29 in October, has 19 games of NFL regular-season experience, all while with the Los Angeles Chargers between 2020 and 2022.
“I was sitting at home, and I was training, just staying in shape,” Fehoko said. “That’s just the competitive nature side of me. Honestly, man, I was enjoying being a dad. I was enjoying being home, considering retiring because at this point in my career, I feel like I’ve done it all. But as I was fielding calls more throughout the summer and more towards the fall when late July started to roll around, kind of got this new sense of motivation after the first team called and the second team called and finally Pittsburgh called. I was like, ‘You know what? Like, maybe I’ll go give it another run, see how it goes and turns out for me.’
“So, it’s great. When a team like Pittsburgh calls, especially with what they’ve done this year, I mean, there’s no choice, especially being here. It helps a lot.”
Fehoko paid much more attention to his diet this offseason. He believes it will help him be a more versatile backup at every position along a defensive line.
Popular with teammates, Fehoko appreciated the ribbing he got from the playful “boos” upon his re-introduction to the team. It reminded him of why he wants to keep playing football.
“That’s just that kind of stuff, you enjoy that,” he said, “because it’s like a second family.”
