Washington Redskins trade Dashaun Phillips to Pittsburgh Steelers for Lucas Crowley

Aug. 24 (UPI) -- The Washington Redskins have acquired center Lucas Crowley from the Pittsburgh Steelers, in exchange for cornerback Dashaun Phillips.

Washington announced the deal on Wednesday.

Phillips, 26, had eight tackles and a fumble recovery in 11 games for the Redskins. He started two games last season and appeared in five contests in 2016. Crowley entered the NFL on May 2 as an undrafted college free agent signing by the Arizona Cardinals. He was waived on July 22 and signed with the Steelers on August 8.

The 6-foot-3, 290-pound North Carolina product was a second-team All-ACC selection last season when he started 13 games for the Tar Heels. He played in 41 games overall at North Carolina. The Tar Heels averaged 293.2 passing yards per game last season, the third-best mark in the ACC.

Redskins starting center Spencer Long had knee surgery this week. Long has 25 starts in his last two seasons for the Redskins. He was a third round pick in the 2014 NFL Draft.

Phillips entered the NFL two years ago as an undrafted free agent signing. The Steelers, who owned the No. 16 pass defense last season, have Ross Cockrell, Artie Burns, William Gay, Cody Sensabaugh, Cameron Sutton, Brian Allen and Phillips at cornerback on its depth chart. Pittsburgh drafted Sutton in the third round and Allen in the fifth round of the 2017 NFL Draft and signed Sensabaugh as a free agent in March.