Concerned by the recent injuries to starting tight end Mark Bruener, the Pittsburgh Steelers on Wednesday reached a contract agreement that will bolster the position, adding free agent Jay Riemersma.

A six-year veteran, Riemersma was released three weeks ago by Buffalo for salary cap reasons. He will sign a three-year contract with the Steelers that is worth about $3.9 million. The deal includes a signing bonus of $850,000.

There is a decent chance that Riemersma, 29, will eventually become the starter in Pittsburgh, where Bruener has finished each of the last two years on the injured reserve list. Bruener played in just nine contests in 2001 because of a shoulder injury and a knee injury limited the eight-year pro to only 12 games in 2002.

Bruener, has a salary cap charge of $2.65 million for 2003 and there already is some speculation he could be released before training camp. Even if the Steelers released Bruener before June 1, they would realize a small salary cap savings of $250,000.

Riemersma would certainly offer a potential replacement. He averaged 13 starts for the Bills between 1999-2002, was generally regarded among the top dozen tight ends in the NFL, and was very popular in Buffalo with the fans and his teammates.

Not as effective a blocker as Bruener has been, Riemersma is a much better receiver. He has 204 career receptions for 2,304 yards and 20 touchdowns in 90 games and 64 starts. His best season was in '01, when he had 53 catches for 590 yards. His role was reduced last year as the Bills went more to three wide receivers and he had 30 fewer passes directed at him.

The former Michigan standout joined the Bills as a seventh-round pick in the 1996 draft. He spent his first season on the practice squad, played as a backup and on special teams for two years after that and then moved into the starting lineup in 1999.

In the last two weeks, Pittsburgh has re-signed backup tight ends Jerame Tuman and Matt Cushing. The Steelers might also consider selecting a tight end with one of their high-round draft choices.

Len Pasquarelli is a senior writer for ESPN.com.