State of the Steelers

[3rivers]

what do you think they will do for the rest of UFA signings this year or trades?  

I still hope they can sign Justin Houston/Yannick etc, vet EDGE  but think they could get by with Leal and Herbig. 

Slot might be in need of help, but who do you trade for? Slot isn't for everyone and good slot CB's will be kept and not traded most likely. 

maybe they trade mitch and front load Alex's new contract, so the cap hit won't be bad a few years from now. 

Alexander, KVN or even Houston won't cost much either, to me these would be good signings.  Could sing 2 of those no problem before mitch is gone

does keeping Mason -> cutting mitch?

[warfelg]

 

[August4th]

He lives right in the same area as me. His family must love this move

[VigilantZombie]

Seems to me there is a serious shift of philosophy within the Secondary unit. 

Akhello Witherspoon, Arthur Maulett, Im not sure these are the last guys that are gonna be cut from the roster. It would appear they're moving toward more man/press coverage. 

[3rivers]

1 hour ago, VigilantZombie said:

Seems to me there is a serious shift of philosophy within the Secondary unit. 

Akhello Witherspoon, Arthur Maulett, Im not sure these are the last guys that are gonna be cut from the roster. It would appear they're moving toward more man/press coverage. 

not to mention the shift at OL, and the ILB makeover. Fair to say, within a few years the colbert era will be looked back at with very few players that were here in 22'

[VigilantZombie]

1 hour ago, 3rivers said:

not to mention the shift at OL, and the ILB makeover. Fair to say, within a few years the colbert era will be looked back at with very few players that were here in 22'

Yeah I love the shift in philosophy and the more aggressive approach. Tbh, Colberts style, while keeping us afloat, was quickly becoming archaic

[AFF]

9 hours ago, Dcash4 said:

After signing Mason, the Steelers can get like $22M in cap savings by cutting non-roster changing dudes. I am not saying they will, but that's an incredible amount of money out there at this stage to either go get someone impactful or carry over to the next season. 

Where you getting $22 mill from…I know Spoon is $4 mill and then another easy $4.5 mill in Gunner and Adams but who else…I’d like to cut Trubisky but there’re not going to,

BTW, the elephant in the room next year will be what to do with Heyward…they can save over $16 mill in cap room if he gets let go or retires after next season.

[3rivers]

1 hour ago, AFF said:

Where you getting $22 mill from…I know Spoon is $4 mill and then another easy $4.5 mill in Gunner and Adams but who else…I’d like to cut Trubisky but there’re not going to,

BTW, the elephant in the room next year will be what to do with Heyward…they can save over $16 mill in cap room if he gets let go or retires after next season.

see what the new FO does about Heyward, but if he wants to stay, they should keep him. Maybe not at the same rate and amount of snaps but still keep him. Or will they go the BB route and say thanks for everythng but it's time to move on?  I would prefer to keep if reasonable but maybe the new FO is different?

[BillsGuy82]

On 5/11/2023 at 9:17 AM, 3rivers said:

if TJ stays healthy, it changes everything. Probably DPOY candidate and helps Alex too. Been a while since a team had 2 players get 20+ sacks in a season but if TJ stays healthy and with Alex getting better (plus improved CB's and ILB's) it could happen. 

it might be the toughest in the NFL.  They could have 3 teams go to the playoffs and losing to bad teams could be the difference between playing in the playoffs or watching them at home 

Same with AFC East with Rodgers now in NY

[3rivers]

59 minutes ago, BillsGuy82 said:

Same with AFC East with Rodgers now in NY

The Jets should close the gap with Rodgers there , they could be the dark horse and shock many.  Not  sure if Tua can stay on the field for the fins though, and the pats are probably lacking QB play.  I expect the Bills and Jets from the AFC East if 2 were to make it.  

[jebrick]

Until someone knocks them off, I would pick the Bengals to win the AFC North

[Dcash4]

13 hours ago, AFF said:

Where you getting $22 mill from…I know Spoon is $4 mill and then another easy $4.5 mill in Gunner and Adams but who else…I’d like to cut Trubisky but there’re not going to,

Mitch saves $8M
Adams saves $2.5M
Dotson saves $2.7M
Gunner saves $2M
Killebrew saves $2M
Witherspoon saved $4M

That's $21.2M (I just kinda eye balled it last time so I rounded). 

I don't think they do all these things, but these are all guys our roster really wouldn't miss and you could get significant savings from. 

I agree Mitch likely isn't going anywhere, but if Mason is making around $4M there isn't a $4M gap between the two. If either of them needed to play, the offense is going to turtle. Don't overpay for tucking your tail and trying to win 10-13. 

13 hours ago, AFF said:

BTW, the elephant in the room next year will be what to do with Heyward…they can save over $16 mill in cap room if he gets let go or retires after next season.

IMO the only way Heyward isn't on this roster is if he retires. His level of play - relative to the rest of the NFL - is still really, really, really high. Unless that takes a major dip, I expect him to get a deal to stay until he doesn't want to anymore. 

[warfelg]

51 minutes ago, Dcash4 said:

Killebrew saves $2M

He’s a core special teamer and unlikely to be cut.

[Dcash4]

13 minutes ago, warfelg said:

He’s a core special teamer and unlikely to be cut.

1 hour ago, Dcash4 said:

I don't think they do all these things,

Just highlighting guys who are cuttable based on their financial gain and grip to the roster. Special teams is an important piece but if Elijah Riley, Scott Nelson, or Kenny Robinson show teams value there's more incentive to keep them vs a guy who is more expensive with no future contract control. 

This new GM group has already seen 4 of their top 6 special teams guys not return (though, TBD on Benny Snell IMO). They don't seem afraid to turn over that room or value it financially like the past. The three players they have signed specifically for STs so far total $3.3M in cap hit. 

IMO Killebrew is going to be a guy fighting for a hat. Tanner Muse may be listed at LBer, but he is more athletically gifted than Killebrew and could fill that role on teams if they choose to keep a guy like Tae Crowder for depth at a weak position group over someone who might be 5th on their depth chart. 

TLDR: I think Killebrew has a leg up, but I don't see him as a lock on the roster by any means. 

[AFF]

1 hour ago, Dcash4 said:

Mitch saves $8M
Adams saves $2.5M
Dotson saves $2.7M
Gunner saves $2M
Killebrew saves $2M
Witherspoon saved $4M

That's $21.2M (I just kinda eye balled it last time so I rounded). 

I don't think they do all these things, but these are all guys our roster really wouldn't miss and you could get significant savings from. 

I agree Mitch likely isn't going anywhere, but if Mason is making around $4M there isn't a $4M gap between the two. If either of them needed to play, the offense is going to turtle. Don't overpay for tucking your tail and trying to win 10-13. 

IMO the only way Heyward isn't on this roster is if he retires. His level of play - relative to the rest of the NFL - is still really, really, really high. Unless that takes a major dip, I expect him to get a deal to stay until he doesn't want to anymore. 

Oh I agree with the Trubisky/Rudolph thought process.

Totally forgot about Dotson TBH…maybe a TC injury to a contending teams OG might present itself.

I just think this is another “transition” year…I’d be prepping the team to make a huge push starting in 2024