Steelers K Chris Boswell Signs RFA Tender
Steelers kicker Chris Boswell has signed his second-round restricted free agent tender, according to Mark Kaboly of the Athletic (Twitter link). Boswell will now be paid $2.914MM for the 2018 season.
Boswell was one of 14 NFL restricted free agents to be tender at the second-round level, and he’s the fifth — following Falcons guard Ben Garland, Jaguars running back Corey Grant, Seahawks cornerback Justin Coleman, and Jets receiver Quincy Enunwa— to officially sign his tender. There was no rush for Boswell to ink his tender, as RFAs have until April 20 to work out offer sheets with other clubs. However, it was always unlikely that any NFL team would have been willing to sacrifice a second-round pick in order to land Boswell.
Boswell, 27, is now entering his fourth season as the Steelers’ placekicker. In 2017, Boswell earned his first Pro Bowl berth after 92.1% if his field goal attempts, including a perfect four-for-four from 50+ yards. Football Outsiders ranked Boswell seventh in the NFL with 8.4 points added via field goals and extra points.
NFL Draft Rumors: Jackson, Patriots, Rudolph
Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson may have erred by opting to go through the NFL draft process without an agent, Joel Corry of CBSSports.com writes. Jackson will avoid paying a portion of his rookie deal to a representative, but in an effort to save some cash, he could be hurting his draft position, which would negate the savings on the standard 1.5% fee.
Reportedly, Jackson struggled in breaking down X’s and O’s on the white board in meetings with teams and his Wonderlic score was poor. Some say the Wonderlic is meaningless, but some execs still use it as part of their evaluation process and an agent would have had him prepped for the test and other aspects of team interviews. An agent would also help to push the narrative that Jackson should be considered above some of this year’s top quarterbacks, including USC’s Sam Darnold, UCLA’s Josh Rosen, Oklahoma’s Baker Mayfield, and Wyoming’s Josh Allen.
Ultimately, Jackson’s decision will look like a smart one if he winds up going in the top half of the first round, Corry argues. But, based on what we’ve heard so far, that doesn’t seem likely. It’s notable that the Texans, who are already armed with a star QB in Deshaun Watson and don’t pick until the third round, recently had a private workout with Jackson.
Here’s more NFL draft news:
- South Carolina tight end Hayden Hurst will visit the Panthers on Friday Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Carolina owns the No. 24 overall pick and they could use that selection to give themselves a potent tight end with receiving ability. Greg Olsen will start for the Panthers this season, but he is 33 and entering a contract year. In the past, Olsen has fought for a revamped deal, so it’s conceivable that he will look to push the market next March. Even if Olsen is retained beyond 2018, the Panthers need to consider the future of the tight end position.
- The Patriots, who now own two first-round picks, recently had a private workout with Oklahoma State quarterback Mason Rudolph, Rapoport tweets. Rudolph hasn’t garnered as much attention as this year’s top four QBs, but he is a potential first-rounder. Rapoport hears that he has been extremely busy with meetings and workouts, a possible sign that his stock is climbing.
- Rudolph will also have a top 30 visit with the Bills this weekend, according to Rapoport (on Twitter). The Bills own picks at 12 and 22, so he could be in the mix for one of those spots. Rudolph has also met with or had workouts for the Chargers, Saints, Giants, Steelers, and Bengals.
Steelers Re-Sign WR Justin Hunter
Justin Hunter is back with the Steelers, according to an announcement from the team. Terms of his deal were not disclosed. The Steelers also confirmed the re-signing of running back Stevan Ridley.
Hunter seemed to hold serious promise when he entered the league as a second round pick of the Titans in 2013. Since then, he has spent time with three other teams with the Steelers being the most recent of the bunch. He has managed just 14 catches with the Bills, Dolphins, and Steelers over the last two campaigns. His best season came most productive season came in 2014 when he had 28 catches for 498 yards and three scores with the Titans, though he did manage four TDs with Buffalo in 2016.
Hunter won’t have the easiest path towards making the Steelers’ final cut. Ideally, he’d be a No. 5 WR type, but he doesn’t offer much in the way of special teams value. He has played only four special teams snaps during his six-year career.
Behind star Antonio Brown, the Steelers also have Juju Smith-Schuster, Martavis Bryant, and Darrius Heyward-Bey at wide receiver. As shown on Roster Resource, Trey Griffey (son of baseball legend Ken Griffey Jr), Justin Thomas, Marcus Tucker, and Tevin Jones are also among those looking to make the 53-man roster.
Latest On James Harrison
Linebacker James Harrison is waiting until after the draft to sign with a team, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com tweets. Of course, that’s probably not by Harrison’s choice. At this stage of his career, he is no longer a top priority for clubs. 
Harrison’s top priority is finding a situation in which he can see significant time on the field, Fowler hears. That all but rules out a return to the Steelers, but the Patriots have been one of a handful of teams to inquire on him over the last month.
To the surprise of many in the football world, the Steelers released Harrison in December. He quickly hooked on with the Patriots and proved to be effective in his short stint with them in one regular season game and three playoff contests. Still, Harrison will turn 40 in May, which will limit his market.
Harrison left the Steelers as their all-time sack leader with 80.5 and earned defensive player of the year acclaim in 2008. That season ended with Pittsburgh’s sixth Super Bowl title, one Harrison helped cement with his 100-yard interception return in Super Bowl XLIII.
Steelers Sign S Nat Berhe
Nat Berhe announced on Twitter that he has signed with the Steelers. It took Berhe a little while to find his new NFL home, but he’s hardly the only safety in that predicament this offseason. 
Here in April, the free agent safety market is still rife with big names including Eric Reid, Kenny Vaccaro, Tre Boston, T.J. Ward, Tyvon Branch, Darius Butler, and former Steeler Mike Mitchell. Plenty of top cornerbacks cashed in this year, but big name safeties are struggling to find suitable deals.
Berhe is not of the same caliber as Reid, Vaccaro, and others, but he did provide depth and solid special teams play for the Giants in 2017. The 26-year-old (27 in July) led the G-Men with ten special teams tackles in 2017 and only two Steelers totaled more last season.
NFL Draft Rumors: Vander Esch, Steelers, Bills
The latest NFL Draft news:
- Linked to Leighton Vander Esch for several weeks this offseason, the Steelers met with the Boise State outside linebacker on Monday night, Tony Pauline of Draft Analyst reports. Pittsburgh has used first-round picks on either inside or outside ‘backers in four of its past five drafts. Three of those players remain on the team, but only two will be able to play this season. Ryan Shazier has been declared out as he attempts to recover from his frightening spine injury. Pauline wrote in March that Vander Esch won’t get past Pittsburgh at No. 28.
- Next up for Vander Esch met the Cowboys on Wednesday morning, James Palmer of NFL.com tweets. After that, he has the Cardinals and every team picking between No. 12 to No. 24, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Aside from the aforementioned clubs, the teams picking from No. 12-24 are the Bills (twice), Redskins, Packers, Ravens, Chargers, Seahawks, Lions, Bengals, Bills, Patriots, and Panthers.
- LSU pass-rusher Arden Key met with the Saints and Lions before his pro day on Wednesday and will visit with the Bengals on Thursday, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. Due to injuries, key only started in eight games last year, but he still finished out with 33 tackles, 5.5 for loss, four sacks, and a forced fumble. He is widely projected to be a first round pick later this month.
Steelers Re-Sign RB Stevan Ridley
Running back Stevan Ridley has re-signed with the Steelers, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). It’s a one-year deal for the veteran. 
At this point, Ridley has an extensive collection of NFL jerseys. Over the course of seven NFL seasons, he has suited up for the Patriots, Jets, Falcons, and Steelers with stops in between with the Lions, Colts, Broncos, and Vikings.
Ridley is best known for his run with the Pats, which included a stellar 2012 season. In that campaign, he amassed more than 1,200 rushing yards and 12 rushing touchdowns. Unfortunately, injuries have slowed him down ever since.
The 29-year-old will duke it out with James Conner, Fitzgerald Toussaint, and James Summers for a spot behind star Le’Veon Bell in 2018.
Chiefs Sign DB Robert Golden
Robert Golden has signed with the Chiefs, Mark Kaboly of The Athletic tweets. The defensive back has been on the market ever since being released by the Steelers in March. 
The Steelers dropped Golden in order to save $1.5MM against the salary cap. For the Chiefs, he’ll serve as a cheap reinforcement in the secondary after the departures of cornerbacks Terrance Mitchell and Phillip Gaines and the possible loss of free agent Kenneth Acker. The Chiefs’ new look cornerback group will be headlined by former Redskin Kendall Fuller and February free agent pickup David Amerson. Steven Nelson, Keith Reaser, and Will Redmond are also slated to return as reserves. Meanwhile, Golden will also see some action at safety (behind starters Eric Berry and Daniel Sorensen) and special teams.
Golden, 27, spent his entire six-year career with the Steelers until he was cut last month. In 2017, Golden appeared in all 16 games, posting 11 tackles and one interception in that time.
Steelers To Host S Nat Berhe
Although the safety market resides at an odd standstill, the Steelers made their move early by signing Morgan Burnett. They’re now on the lookout for depth.
Former Giants safety Nat Berhe will visit the Steelers, according to Art Stapleton of NorthJersey.com (via Twitter).
Berhe served as depth for the Giants and a special teams presence. Although the San Diego State alum played just 39 defensive snaps last season, he led Big Blue with 10 special teams stops last season. Only two Steelers had more in 2017. Berhe missed the entire 2015 season with a calf injury and played in only seven games, starting two, in 2016. But the former fifth-round pick bounced back to suit up for 15 Giants games last season.
The Steelers still have former second-round pick Sean Davis, but he’s hoping to bounce back after a season Pro Football Focus deemed the worst among full-time safeties. Pittsburgh cut Mike Mitchell earlier this offseason, and he remains a free agent.
Opinion: Steelers' Bell Should Sign Tag
Steelers running back Le’Veon Bell has threatened to hold out or even retire if he doesn’t get a contract extension, but his best bet would be to follow the path of his former college teammate Kirk Cousins, Michael David Smith of PFT argues. By signing the franchise tender, Bell would nearly guarantee that he can reach unrestricted free agency next year since a third consecutive tag would cost upwards of $20MM. On the open market, Bell could completely reset the market for running backs and score big bucks for both his rushing ability and pass-catching acumen.