No Deals For Bell, Lawrence, Ansah, Or Joyner
None of this year’s franchise tagged players agreed to extensions with their respective teams before Monday’s deadline. That means Steelers running back Le’Veon Bell, Lions defensive end Ziggy Ansah, Cowboys defensive end Demarcus Lawrence, and Rams safety Lamarcus Joyner will all play on their tags in 2018. 
Over the weekend, we heard that deals were unlikely for any of the four players. However, we’ve been surprised in the past. You may recall the 2016 franchise tag extension deadline in which Muhammad Wilkerson and the Jets agreed to a buzzer-beating deal after weeks of reports indicating that it would not happen (the Jets certainly wish it hadn’t happened now).
There was no surprise this year, so the four franchise tagged players are all entering contract seasons at the following rates:
- Ezekiel Ansah – $17.1MM
- DeMarcus Lawrence – $17.1MM
- Le’Veon Bell – $14.5MM
- Lamarcus Joyner – ~$12MM
This marks the first ever franchise tag for Ansah, Lawrence, and Joyner. For Bell, this is the second go ’round and it’s incredibly unlikely that the Steelers will consider a third tag, no matter how good he is in 2018.
Per league rules, extension talks cannot resume between the team and the tagged player until after the 2018 season has concluded.
Steelers, Le’Veon Bell In Negotiations
The franchise tag extension deadline is roughly one hour away, and it’s not clear whether the Steelers and Le’Veon Bell are close on a new deal. However, they are at least talking, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. A deal is considered to be a longshot at this time, Rapoport notes, but there is a good-faith effort being made by both parties. 
If no deal is reached by 4pm ET/3pm CT, Bell will play out the 2018 season on the $14.5MM franchise tag. The Steelers will not be able to resume extension talks until after the season is over, and Bell will almost certainly opt to test the open market.
Bell is after a deal that reflects his performance as an elite running back who also provides the production of a No. 2 wide receiver. That means a game-changing contract for RBs that also includes a hefty guarantee and significant cash flow. So far, the Steelers have been unwilling to come close to his demands.
Last year, the Steelers offered Bell a $60MM deal with $42.5MM coming in the first three years of the pact with unknown guarantees. Bell, meanwhile, is said to be seeking $17MM per year. Recently, the Steelers upped their offer to more than $13.3MM per season.
Steelers Increased Offer To Le’Veon Bell
Less than 18 hours remain until the 2018 franchise tag extension deadline, and the impasse between the Steelers and Le’Veon Bell persists after nearly two full offseasons’ worth of negotiations.
The Steelers and Bell resumed talks again this week, and the team is committed to trying to hammer out a deal until the 3pm Monday deadline. However, the two-time All-Pro running back turned down the Steelers’ latest offer, one worth north of $13.3MM per year, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com reports (video link).
Pittsburgh’s 2017 offer was worth $13.3MM AAV, and the proposal reportedly contained $30MM in its first two years. However, Bell — attached to a $12.12MM tag at that point — turned that down.
When the Steelers approached him earlier this year, per Fowler, the running back referenced his 406-touch workload last season as evidence he’s worth more. The talks between the parties cooled off until they picked up again months later, and it’s safe to assume Bell’s adjusted price caused the hiatus.
Bell’s $14.54MM 2018 tag figure continues to be his per-year floor, per Fowler. The Steelers and Bell have made progress, but ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter reported earlier Sunday night that the odds are against an agreement being hammered out.
No other running back makes more on a long-term deal than Devonta Freeman‘s $8.25MM, and his 2017 extension only bumped the current running back ceiling up by less than $250K per year. LeSean McCoy‘s 2015 Bills deal represented the standard before that. No other current running back earns more than $8MM annually, but Bell would nearly double that this season by playing on the tag again.
Artie Burns' Fifth-Year Option No Lock?
- Other than Ryan Shazier, the Steelers have not possessed an open-and-shut case for exercising a fifth-year option in a while. They passed on Jarvis Jones‘ and picked up Bud Dupree‘s, doing so despite the 2015 first-rounder’s inconsistency. However, with Artie Burns‘ decision coming up in May, Tim Benz of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review sees another difficult call coming. Burns has not established himself as a surefire member of the Steelers’ core but is expected to be a starter again opposite Joe Haden. This season figures to be pivotal for the Miami product’s future.
Latest On Franchise-Tagged Players
Monday’s 3pm CT deadline for franchise-tagged players to sign extensions may come and go without one being finalized.
After a Saturday report indicated re-ups were unlikely for DeMarcus Lawrence and Ziggy Ansah, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com confirmed Ansah and the Lions won’t agree to terms by Monday afternoon and adds Lawrence is unlikely to come to terms with the Cowboys (Twitter links).
As for the other two tagged players, prospects also appear grim. Schefter reports (on Twitter) Lamarcus Joyner is not expected to reach an extension with the Rams, though he adds the sides are still discussing one. And despite Mike Tomlin‘s hopes of Le’Veon Bell finally agreeing to a Steelers accord, Schefter reports (via Twitter) that’s unlikely, too. However, the Steelers and Bell have made recent progress and will keep trying until the deadline. But this report throws some cold water on an 11th-hour solution coming to pass.
Ansah and the Lions have been far apart throughout this process, and the Lions are planning to see if their top edge defender can stay healthy and prove reliable enough for a long-term commitment. The Cowboys may be using the same strategy with their injury-prone pass rusher, despite making a stronger effort to discuss a deal with Lawrence.
Bell and the Steelers have been circling each other for years, but if the parties can’t agree by Monday afternoon, their arrangement will be a full-fledged rental situation. Bell will likely be headed toward the 2019 UFA market if the Steelers don’t sign him by Monday. The Rams’ issues with Aaron Donald‘s deal leave Joyner in a strange spot. Los Angeles possesses a league-low $2MM in cap space and has a glut of contract calls coming — Donald, Joyner, Brandin Cooks, Todd Gurley, Marcus Peters — in what will be a complicated stretch for the now-high-profile team.
Of course, by the Lions, Cowboys and Rams not agreeing on deals with their tagged performers, that ups prices down the line. Since Bell has already been twice tagged, it would cost the Steelers a staggering $20MM-plus to tag their All-Pro back again.
Ansah is going to play this season for $17.1MM, and if Lawrence indeed is still without a deal by Monday evening, he will too. Joyner will count nearly $12MM on the Rams’ payroll, while Bell’s $14.5MM 2018 salary has been well-known for months by NFL contract buffs.
Tomlin Hopes Le'Veon Bell Deal Finalized
Mike Tomlin addressed the contract status of his top running back and is hopeful that the key players being in the same room will bring about a long-awaited resolution to the Le’Veon Bell impasse. The 12th-year Steelers coach believes everyone involved in this process wants this deal finalized.
Earlier Saturday, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reported some late progress has emerged here after previously it was looking like a strong possibility existed of Bell hitting the 2019 free agent market. The deadline for franchise-tagged performers to sign extensions is 3pm CT Monday. If Bell does not reach a deal, he’s not expected to show up at the Steelers’ facility until after the preseason concludes.
- The Steelers drafted James Washington in the second round because they “love” his ability to adjust on deep targets and make contested catches, Tim Benz of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review notes. Washington’s ability to win 50-50 balls will make him credible in an area in which Martavis Bryant didn’t display a reliable skill last season, Benz writes, though conceding the former Oklahoma State star doesn’t have Bryant’s athleticism.
Steelers, Le’Veon Bell Making Progress
A final-day extension for Le’Veon Bell remains possible, despite recent projections that such an agreement wasn’t feasible for the Steelers. However, it’s likely going to come down to Monday, a day that figures to determine the Steelers’ future at running back.
Bell and the Steelers are making progress, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports (on Twitter), and are bracing for a seminal final day of negotiations on Monday.
If Bell ends up playing this season on the $14.5MM tag, he’s likely going to be a 2019 UFA. A third tag for the All-Pro back would exceed $20MM. Bell’s price point this offseason has been difficult to pin down, but the $14.5MM tag figure has been seen as the absolute floor for the 26-year-old superstar. And Antonio Brown‘s $17MM-AAV mark has been mentioned as well. Steelers reporters have expressed doubt the team will authorize an agreement that merely reaches the $14.5MM-per-year mark, let alone a market-shattering $17MM-AAV deal.
The Steelers and Bell nearly finalized a deal at last year’s deadline, and it looks like the sides have not given up on finally doing so a year later. Bell is widely believed to have nixed a viable Steelers offer — one that would have paid him $30MM in the contract’s first two years but one Bell said averaged just more than $13MM per season in totality — just before the 2017 deadline, but he recently expressed optimism about he and the Steelers agreeing on terms.
Bell posted 1,946 yards from scrimmage last season in just 15 games, but his 4.0 yards per carry represented a steep drop from the 4.9 he’d averaged in 2015 and ’16. At the rate the Steelers have used him (406 touches in those 15 games last year), it would make sense for Bell to lock in some longer-term security before the Super Bowl-contending team adds to his odometer this season. That said, Bell has not shown he’s willing to back off a price he believes is justified. So, it’s hard to say which way this will end up going 48 hours from the deadline.
On the Steelers’ end, they will most likely have to replace Bell in 2019 if Monday’s talks don’t end up producing a deal. And that would break up the historically dominant skill-position duo of he and Brown before one of those members turns 27. Considering Ben Roethlisberger‘s age, it may be prudent for the franchise — one that hasn’t been shy about restructuring deals to make newer extensions fit — to keep its core intact to capitalize on its quarterback’s skills before an inevitable decline. But no other running back earns more than $9MM per year, understandably causing these talks to drag to the point they have.
Will Steelers Move On From Ramon Foster?
- Guard Ramon Foster is entering his tenth season with the Steelers, but it could be his last, Joe Rutter of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review writes. Foster’s contract expires after the season, and the Steelers might prefer to go with a younger option next year, such as backup B.J. Finney. Finney, who will be a 27-year-old restricted free agent in March, has filled in capably for Foster in four games over the last two seasons.
Who Will Play Slot For Steelers?
The Steelers have a long history of developing wideouts, but heading into the 2018 campaign, they’re faced with a question mark in the slot, as Joe Rutter of the Pittsburgh Tribune writes. While superstar Antonio Brown and 2017 second-round pick JuJu Smith-Schuster are locked in as Pittsburgh’s starters in two-receiver sets, but it’s unclear who will play in the middle of the field. The most obvious candidate might be rookie James Washington, but he’s viewed as more of an outside threat. Per Rutter, Washington and Smith-Schuster could be see time in the slot, but Marcus Tucker — who spent the 2017 season on the Steelers’ practice squad — may also see snaps. Eli Rogers, Pittsburgh’s main slot man in 2016, is still on the open market after suffering a torn ACL, but is expected to re-sign with the Steelers when he attains full health.
This Date In Transactions History: Mike Vrabel Retires
On this date in 2011, Mike Vrabel traded in his pads for a clipboard and whistle. Vrabel, a longtime NFL linebacker, retired from the Chiefs on July 11, 2011 in order to become an assistant coach at Ohio State. 
Vrabel was just a few weeks shy of his 36th birthday at the time and was still a productive player on the field. In 2010, he amassed 48 total tackles for the Chiefs and appeared in all 16 games. However, he wasn’t the same player that he was in his prime with the Patriots, and the time he spent with the younger players in KC nudged him in the direction of coaching.
“His genuine love for the game, his preparation, his work ethic, leadership and dependability are qualities you want from every player,” then-Chiefs GM Scott Pioli said. “He is a champion in every sense of the word and I’m confident all of these qualities will make him a great coach. I cannot overstate my respect for him as a person and a football player.”
Pioli was right – he had a knack for this coaching thing. Although Vrabel was hired by interim Buckeyes coach (and his former teammate and roommate) Luke Fickell, Urban Meyer elected to keep him on board as a part of his new staff when he took over in December of 2011. In 2014, he hooked on with the Texans as their linebackers coach. In 2017, he was elevated to defensive coordinator in Houston. This past January, the Titans hired him as their head coach after a quick search.
“He was the ultimate team-first player, and he embodies that same mindset as a coach,” Titans GM Jon Robinson said after hiring Vrabel. “He is intelligent, energetic, detailed and a leader whose deep passion for this game will resonate with our players. As a coach, I have seen him develop talent at both the college and NFL level, and put players in position for them to be successful.”
Vrabel might have been able to contribute on the field for a 15th NFL season, but he opted to jumpstart his coaching career on this date seven years ago instead. If not for that decision, Vrabel probably wouldn’t have ascended the NFL coaching ladder as quickly as he did to become the Titans’ new head coach this year.