The Green Bay Packers Wednesday promoted tight end Ben Steele from the practice squad to the active roster and reinstated cornerback Mike McKenzie from the reserve/did not report list, GM/Head Coach Mike Sherman announced.
In addition, the club re-signed to its practice squad running back Walter Williams and released from the practice squad quarterback Scott McBrien.
The Packers have applied to the league office for a temporary roster exemption on McKenzie, and are expected to carry 54 players on their active roster for at least this week. The active roster had listed only 52 players since Saturday.
Steele, who will switch to No. 82, makes his first regular-season appearance on an active NFL roster. Signed to the practice squad Sept. 7, he had spent 2003 and '04 training camps with the Vikings. The 6-5, 250-pound tight end out of Mesa State entered the NFL as a non-drafted free agent in 2001, signed by the 49ers. San Francisco waived him at the end of his rookie training camp, later re-signed him to its practice squad and offseason roster, then allocated him in 2002 to the Frankfurt Galaxy of NFL Europe, where he caught 11 passes for 110 yards and one TD. After a 2003 offseason stint with the Seahawks, he first joined the Vikings as a free agent just before '03 camp.
Williams, a 6-1, 206-pound running back out of Grambling State, spent all of training camp in Green Bay before the Packers waived him Sept. 4. The Packers also allocated him to the Rhein Fire of NFL Europe for the 2004 season.
McBrien was also waived in the Packers' final preseason roster reduction, on Sept. 5, and re-signed to the practice squad two days later.
