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Tyson Alualu Nixes Jaguars Deal, Re-Joins Steelers

March 27th, 2021 at 6:50pm CST by Zachary Links

After agreeing to join Jaguars, Tyson Alualu had a change of heart. The veteran defensive end has instead re-signed with the Steelers on a two-year deal, according to sources who spoke with NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter). 

The Jaguars verbally agreed to a two-year, $6MM deal with Alualu on March 16. The 33-year-old (34 in May) planned to make it all official on a trip to Jacksonville, but a positive test for COVID-19 forced him to postpone the trip. While quarantining in his Pittsburgh home for ten days, the veteran edge rusher reconsidered his decision.

Alualu was the 10th overall pick of the Jags way back in 2010, and although he’s been a solid player, he never really lived up to his draft status. He has had a bit of a late career resurgence in Pittsburgh, including some quality work with the Steelers last year. He played on ~44% of Pittsburgh’s defensive snaps in 2020 and finished with 38 tackles, two sacks, and five passes defended. He received very strong marks from Pro Football Focus for his work as a run defender.

Now, the big fella will return to one of the league’s best defenses. Meanwhile, Urban Meyer will have to look elsewhere for interior line help.

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