We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here:
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: TE Marcus Baugh
- Waived: TE Dax Raymond
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: C Spencer Pulley, C Patrick Morris
- Waived: OT Elijah Nkansah
The Steelers were in contact with free agent edge rusher Justin Houston as recently as last week (Twitter link via Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports). However, with Melvin Ingram in the fold, the Steelers probably won’t look to add another veteran like Houston to the mix.
[RELATED: Steelers Sign Melvin Ingram]
Houston, one of the most fearsome pass rushers in the league during his heyday with the Chiefs, is coming off of a two-year stint with the Colts. He’s no longer a First Team All-Pro talent, but he was still productive in Indy, averaging 9.5 sacks per year over his two Colts campaigns. Pro Football Focus’ advanced metrics assigned him middling grades in both run and pass D, but the 32-year-old would be an asset to most any pass rushing corps.
That list would have included the Steelers, who could have slotted him opposite of two-time All-Pro T.J. Watt. Instead, they chose Ingram, who offers a much stronger resume than the likes of Quincy Roche, youngster Alex Highsmith, and Cassius Marsh.
Houston should be able to land a deal, though the other clubs previously tied to him have also found DE help elsewhere. The Colts snagged Michigan’s Kwity Paye in the first round while the Ravens landed Penn State’s Odafe Oweh. On the other hand, the Ravens might be willing to give Houston a low-cost, one-year deal now that they’re without Matt Judon and Yannick Ngakoue.
The Steelers lost one middle linebacker today, but the team got good news on another. According to Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (via Twitter), linebacker Devin Bush is recovering nicely from his torn ACL and is expected “to be cleared to fully practice right away.”
[RELATED: Steelers LB Vince Williams Announces Retirement]
The former first-round pick tore his ACL in October, limiting him to only five games last season. He had appeared in every Steelers defensive snap up to that point of the season, collecting 26 tackles and one sack. That performance followed a rookie campaign where Bush collected 109 tackles, one sack, two interceptions, and four fumble recoveries, leading to him earning PFWA All-Rookie Team honors.
Bush made a cameo at OTAs, and the hope was that he’d be fully healthy by Week 1. It sounds like he’ll be fully healthy much earlier than that, allowing the 23-year-old to truly prepare for the upcoming campaign. Bush will regain his starting gig in 2021, and he’ll presumably start alongside Robert Spillane.
The Steelers learned earlier today that veteran linebacker Vince Williams was calling it a career. The 31-year-old was expected to play a significant role behind both Bush and Spillane.
Vince Williams is calling it a career. The Steelers linebacker announced his retirement today, per an announcement from the organization.
“Vince Williams notified us today that he will retire from the game of football,” said Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert. “We respect his decision and want to thank him for his time with us as he consistently showed great character and leadership in addition to his contributions on the field. We wish Vince and his family all the best.”
The 2013 sixth-round pick spent his entire career in Pittsburgh, appearing in 121 games. Williams will retire having collected 479 tackles, 50 tackles for loss, 20.5 sacks, and 45 QB hits, a mark that ranks 11th in franchise history. The linebacker also saw time in eight playoff games for the Steelers, collecting 26 tackles.
The 31-year-old continued to produce in 2020, compiling 70 tackles, three sacks, and a career-high 14 tackles for loss in 14 starts. The organization cut the veteran early in the offseason, saving the team $4MM against the cap. Williams later re-signed with the team, inking a one-year deal worth just over $1MM.
Williams was likely going to find himself behind Devin Bush and Robert Spillane at middle linebacker (per Mark Kaboly of The Athletic on Twitter), but he was still going to see plenty of playing time. With the veteran out of the picture, the team could now turn to the likes of Buddy Johnson or Ulysees Gilbert.
Here are today’s draft pick signings:
Baltimore Ravens
- OL Ben Cleveland (Georgia, third round)
Buffalo Bills
- OT Spencer Brown (Northern Iowa, third round)
Jacksonville Jaguars
- CB Tyson Campbell (Georgia, second round)
- OT Walker Little (Stanford, second round)
New England Patriots
- DE Ronnie Perkins (Oklahoma, third round)
Pittsburgh Steelers
- OL Kendrick Green (Illinois, third round)
The pair of Jaguars rookies are the most notable names on the list. The Georgia product rebounded from an injury-plagued 2019 campaign, finishing with 29 tackles, five passes defended, and one interception. The Jaguars selected Campbell with the first selection of the second round, and he should compete for a starting gig right away. Meanwhile, Little was selected with the 45th pick of the draft following a standout collegiate career that saw him earn first-team All-Pac-12 honors. He’ll likely have to work his way into playing time behind Cam Robinson and/or Jawaan Taylor.
Meanwhile, the Steelers’ signing of Green means the team has officially inked their entire draft class to rookie contracts.
We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves here:
Pittsburgh Steelers
- Signed: OT Chaz Green
- Released: OT Jarron Jones, LB Calvin Bundage
Well, that was fast. Soon after meeting with the Steelers, defensive end Melvin Ingram inked a one-year deal to play in Pittsburgh (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). 
Ingram has had an unexpectedly long stay in free agency, likely due to health concerns. Last year, a knee issue held him to just seven games for the Chargers. But, before that, he notched 49 career sacks en route to three straight Pro Bowls from 2017-19. He had exactly zero sacks in 2020, but Pro Football Focus gave him a solid 76.3 pass-rushing score, good for top-20 among all OLBs/DEs.
Ingram, 32, met with the Dolphins and Chiefs earlier this year, but left both visits without deals. Fortunately for them and other teams in need of edge help, Justin Houston, Everson Griffen, Olivier Vernon, and Bruce Irvin are still on the board.
Now, instead of Joey Bosa, he’ll have two-time All-Pro T.J. Watt as his opposite end counterpart. Beyond those two, the Steelers also have rookie Quincy Roche, youngster Alex Highsmith, and veteran Cassius Marsh in the mix.
The Steelers are hosting edge rusher Melvin Ingram on a visit today, (Twitter link via NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport). Ingram, who visited with the Chiefs and Dolphins earlier this year, would help the Steelers fill a lingering mid-summer need.
Ingram is one of several big-name pass rushers left on the board, along with Justin Houston, Everson Griffen, Olivier Vernon, and Bruce Irvin. Like Houston, Ingram is 32 years of age. But, unlike Houston, he comes with some health concerns about his knee. We haven’t heard much about his status, but one has to imagine that he’d be off the board by now if he was 100% healthy.
The longtime Charger earned three consecutive Pro Bowl nods from 2017-19. Last year, however, Ingram was limited to just seven games. In those contests, he failed to record a single sack, though he did manage a 76.3 pass-rushing score from Pro Football Focus in that limited sample. That was good for top-20 status among all NFL edge rushers.
The Steelers have two-time All-Pro T.J. Watt to lead the pack, but former first-round pick Bud Dupree is out of the picture. Beyond him, they’ve got rookie Quincy Roche, youngster Alex Highsmith, and veteran Cassius March on the depth chart.
Six years ago today, the Steelers gave Cameron Heyward his first ever re-up. The defensive lineman scored a six-year, $59.25MM extension with the Steelers, tying him to the club through much of his prime. 
Pittsburgh selected the Ohio State product with the 31st pick of the 2011 draft. It took a while for Heyward to settle into a starting role, but he never looked back after starting 13 games during the 2013 campaign. After combining for 12.5 sacks between the 2013 and 2014 seasons, the Steelers decided to lock him up. However, the deal left them with plenty of wiggle room as Heyward got just $15MM in guaranteed cash.
Heyward more than lived up to that deal. He earned Pro Bowl appearances in every season from 2017 through 2020, plus first-team All-Pro honors in 2017 and 2019. The veteran has only missed two regular season games over the past four years, averaging just over eight sacks per season. And, from ’17 through ’19, he was averaging roughly 10 sacks per campaign.
Last fall, just before Heyward’s would-be walk year, the Steelers inked him to yet another extension. This time around, it was four years for $71.4MM in total with a stronger guarantee of $20.25MM. At the time, there were rumblings that Heyward would approach Aaron Donald‘s six-year, $135MM deal. But, ultimately, he was on the wrong side of 30. He also didn’t have a ton of leverage — throughout the talks, he was vocal about wanting to stay in Pittsburgh.
Heyward’s four-sack season didn’t jump off of the page, but he was still strong in 2020. And, besides Donald, he has more total pressures than anyone over the last four years. There’s still lots of time left on his most recent deal, but it’s safe to say that the Steelers got their money’s worth on Heyward’s first extension.
Ben Levine contributed to this post.
The Buccaneers announced that five individuals would be joining the organization via the The Bill Walsh Diversity Coaching Fellowship: Trai Essex, La’Roi Glover, Andre King, Heather Marini, and Louis Murphy Jr.. These coaches will be allowed to “observe, participate, [and] gain experience” throughout training camp and the preseason, and the experience could ultimately lead to a job offer.
Marini made a name for herself this past season at Brown University as the QB coach, making her the first female position coach in Division I history. Marini previously served as an offensive quality control coach with the Bears, and she served as a scout on Todd Bowles’ staff with the Jets.
Essex and Grover had distinguished careers in the NFL. Grover made six Pro Bowls and was a member of the 2000s All-Decade Team while Essex won a pair of Super Bowls with the Steelers (while playing under current Bucs head coach Bruce Arians). King also has experience playing under Arians, with the two having spent four seasons together in Cleveland.
Murphy Jr. has the best connection to the Buccaneers after spending a few years playing for the organization. The receiver had 41 receptions for 578 yards during his two seasons in Tampa Bay, and that was part of a nine-year career that saw him collecting 2,589 yards from scrimmage and 12 touchdowns. He most recently served as a high school head coach in St. Petersburg, Florida.
Some more notes from around the NFL:
- Jordan Matthews is set to audition for teams as a tight end, and at least one squad will have interest in the veteran. Paul Kuharsky reports (via Twitter) that the Titans are expected to kick the tires on the veteran. Tennessee could use some extra depth at the position after losing Jonnu Smith, but suitors shouldn’t expect too much from Matthews. The 28-year-old has appeared in only five games since the 2019 season, and it’s been four years since he last topped 800 receiving yards.
- Steelers QB Dwayne Haskins was involved in a dispute earlier this month that resulted in his wife facing a domestic violence charge, per ESPN’s Brooke Pryor. Kalabrya Gondrezick-Haskin is accused of punching Haskins in the mouth, leading to a “felony charge of battery and domestic violence resulting in bodily harm.” Haskins reportedly had a split upper lift and a lost tooth, but the quarterback disputed that today on Instagram. “I appreciate the concern… however I have all of my teeth,” Haskins wrote (via Pryor). “Don’t believe everything you read. Peace.”
- “We are aware of the situation but will have no comment,” the organization said in response to ESPN’s inquiry. Haskins inked a one-year deal with Pittsburgh earlier this offseason, and he’ll be competing with Mason Rudolph and Joshua Dobbs to be Ben Roethlisberger‘s primary backup.
- Earlier tonight, we posted a poll asking which head coach will be the first to lose his job. Bears head coach Matt Nagy and Broncos head coach Vic Fangio are neck-and-neck for the lead.