Former Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Darius Rush is sticking around with the Kansas City Chiefs, who inked him to a reserve/futures contract on Tuesday.
Rush signed to the Chiefs’ practice squad on Oct. 4, 2024, after being cut by Pittsburgh on Oct. 1 and going unclaimed on waivers.
The 24-year-old did not appear in a game for Kansas City this past season. Teammates with former Steelers JuJu Smith-Schuster, Steven Nelson and Chris Oladokun, he lost out on what would’ve been the first Super Bowl win of his career as the Philadelphia Eagles defeated the Chiefs 40-22.
Rush played his collegiate ball at South Carolina from 2018 to 2022. He started out as a wide receiver before transitioning to the secondary during his redshirt freshman campaign in 2019.
Throughout his time with the Gamecocks, Rush tallied a total of 74 tackles, 15 passes defended and three interceptions over 43 contests.
He declared for the 2023 NFL Draft and saw his stock rise at the Senior Bowl before participating in the NFL Combine, where he ran a 4.36-second 40-yard dash.
The Indianapolis Colts would select Rush in the fifth round at No. 138 overall, but he was released ahead of the regular season as a rookie.
He was claimed by Kansas City before getting waived on Sept. 16, 2023, and subsequently re-signing to its practice squad. The Steelers then nabbed Rush and added him to their active roster a month later on Oct. 18.
He suited up for three contests in Pittsburgh that season, logging three tackles across 59 total snaps, and entered 2024 with a chance to earn an increased opportunity within the team’s defense.
Rush saw the field in all three of the Steelers’ preseason games, allowing one reception on four targets over 42 reps at corner, per Pro Football Focus.
He cracked the team’s initial 53-man roster and played 19 special teams snaps during the first two weeks of the campaign before his eventual release.