Steelers Rumors: Bell, Glennon
The Steelers are heavy into negotiations with running back Le’Veon Bell on a long-term deal, Aditi Kinkhabwala of NFL.com hears (on Twitter). She adds that there is a very good chance the deal will set the market for running backs. Among rushers with multiyear contracts, the Bills’ LeSean McCoy paces the NFL in total value ($40.05MM) and annual average ($8.01MM), while the Cowboys’ Ezekiel Elliott is atop the league in guarantees (~$25MM). Thanks to his designation as the Steelers’ franchise player, Bell is currently slated to lead all backs in salary next season ($12.12MM).
- On another note relevant to the Steelers’ offense, the club has expressed interest in soon-to-be free agent quarterback Mike Glennon, according to Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (Twitter link). It’s fair to say Glennon won’t end up in Pittsburgh, though, unless Ben Roethlisberger decides to retire by the opening of free agency. Glennon’s current team, Tampa Bay, has tried to keep him at $8MM per year, but he’ll get more money and a chance to start on the market.
Steelers Tender Chris Hubbard
- The Steelers have applied the right-of-first-refusal tender (worth $1.797MM) to restricted free agent offensive tackle Chris Hubbard, tweets Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com. As a result, the Steelers will have the ability to match any offer Hubbard might receive from another club, but they wouldn’t be entitled to draft pick compensation if they were to let him walk. Hubbard, 25, is a three-year veteran with 24 appearances on his resume. He picked up the first four starts of his career and notched a personal-best 15 appearances last season.
2017 NFL Franchise Tag Players
The deadline to designate franchise or transition players for 2017 has passed. Here’s the rundown of the players that were tagged, plus the candidates that did not receive the designation:
Franchise players (exclusive):
- Le’Veon Bell, RB (Steelers): $12.12MM (story)
- Kirk Cousins, QB (Redskins): $23.94MM (story)*
Franchise players (non-exclusive):
- Melvin Ingram, LB (Chargers): $14.55MM (story)
- Trumaine Johnson, CB (Rams): ~$16MM (story)*
- Chandler Jones, LB (Cardinals): $14.55MM (story)
- Jason Pierre-Paul, DE (Giants): $16.934MM (story)
- Kawann Short, DT (Panthers): $13.387MM (story)
*second tag; players receive raise over designated salary for position tender
Candidates who didn’t receive tags:
- A.J. Bouye, CB (Texans)
- Stephon Gilmore, CB (Bills)
- Dont’a Hightower, LB (Patriots)
- Alshon Jeffery, WR (Bears)
- Dontari Poe (Chiefs)
- Terrelle Pryor, WR (Browns)
- Ricky Wagner, OT (Ravens)
- Brandon Williams, DT (Ravens)
Steelers Re-Sign James Harrison
James Harrison has a new two-year deal with the Steelers, according to his agent, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com tweets. Harrison has since confirmed his return via Instagram. 
[RELATED: Steelers Sign Antonio Brown To Extension]
Even at his advanced age, we ranked Harrison as the sixth-best edge defender eligible for free agency late last month. In his age-38 season, Harrison totaled 53 tackles and five sacks. Now on the cusp of his 39th birthday, Harrison has signed a new deal that should allow him to retire as a member of the Steelers.
With the exception of the 2013 season, Harrison has spent his entire career in Pittsburgh. From 2007-2011, Harrison earned five consecutive Pro Bowl nods and was also given two First-Team All-Pro selections.
The advanced metrics were also fond of his play last year as Pro Football Focus ranked him as the 11th best edge defender in the NFL out of 109 qualified players. Harrison was equally strong in pass rush and run defending situations and also earned the highest mark of any qualified edge defender for coverage.
Salary Cap Numbers For All 32 Teams
On Wednesday, we learned that the 2017 salary cap will be set at roughly $167MM. However, every team’s number will be different depending on how much money each team elects to rollover from the previous season.
Courtesy of the NFLPA, we now have the total cap numbers for all 32 clubs. Here they are, listed by division and in descending order:
AFC East
- Dolphins – $175.36MM
- Patriots – $171.29
- Bills – $169.84MM
- Jets – $167.37MM
AFC North
- Browns – $217.12MM
- Bengals – $173.58MM
- Steelers – $170.27MM
- Ravens – $169.55MM
AFC South
- Jaguars – $206.31
- Titans – $191.05MM
- Colts – $173.61MM
- Texans – $171.94MM
AFC West
- Raiders – $175MM
- Broncos – $174.24MM
- Chiefs – $172MM
- Chargers – $167.11MM
NFC East
- Redskins – $182.06MM
- Eagles – $174.93MM
- Cowboys – $169.4MM
- Giants – $168.8MM
NFC North
- Bears – $175.1MM
- Packers – $174.98MM
- Lions – $171.73MM
- Vikings – $167.4MM
NFC South
- Panthers – $180.21MM
- Saints – $172.75MM
- Buccaneers – $172.33MM
- Falcons – $167.93MM
NFC West
- 49ers – $205.71MM
- Cardinals – $171.4MM
- Seahawks – $169.07MM
- Rams – $167.3MM
Steelers Sign Antonio Brown To Extension
The Steelers and Antonio Brown have agreed to an extension, the club announced today. The new deal, which will tie Brown to Pittsburgh through the 2021 season, will make the dynamic wide receiver the highest-paid pass-catcher of all-time.
[RELATED: Follow Pro Football Rumors On Twitter]
The pact will reportedly give Brown four new years worth $68MM, and contains a $19MM signing bonus. Brown’s 2017 base salary has been reduced to a guaranteed $910K, which along with the signing bonus, makes up the only guaranteed portions of the contract.
From there, Brown will earn base salaries of $7.875MM, $12.625MM, $11.3MM, and $12.5MM in 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021, respectively. In 2018, Brown is due a $6MM roster bonus on the fifth day of the league year, and 2019, Brown is due a $2.5MM roster bonus on the fifth day of the league year.
Brown has been pushing for a new deal for more than a year now, but the Steelers held firm to their organizational policy of not addressing contracts until they are one year away from expiration. In this round of talks, the Steelers and agent with Drew Rosenhaus were aiming to have a deal done by March 9th. It seems that the deal has been agreed upon with more than a week before the start of free agency.
Currently, Julio Jones leads all wide receivers in terms of total contract value ($71.25MM overall), per-year average ($14.25MM per year), and total guaranteed cash ($35.5MM). After him, Demaryius Thomas and Dez Bryant are tied or roughly tied in those categories, with Thomas holding a slight edge in total guaranteed money. Apparently, Brown’s new pact will set the new watermark for the wide receiver position.
Brown, 29 in July, is coming off of his third consecutive first-team All-Pro selection. Last year, Brown finished out with 106 catches for 1,284 yards and 12 touchdowns in 15 regular season games. As great as that stat line was, Brown has put up even gaudier numbers for Pittsburgh in the past. In 2014, Brown had 129 catches and 1,698 yards with 13 touchdowns. In 2015, he had an eye-popping 136 catches for 1,834 yards and ten touchdowns.
Before the multi-year agreement, Brown was slated to play out 2017 with a $13.6MM cap charge.
Adam Schefter of ESPN.com first reported the news of the extension and its basic details (Twitter links). Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com (Twitter link) reported the signing bonus amount. Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images. Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk reported the financial specifics of the deal.
Steelers Franchise Tag Le’Veon Bell
The Steelers have placed the franchise tag on running back Le’Veon Bell, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com tweets. The Steelers have opted for the exclusive tag, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter), which means that no other team can sign him away. The two sides now have until July to hammer out a new contract. If they do not, Bell will play out 2017 on a one-year, ~$12MM deal.
The non-exclusive variant of the tag, which costs the same as the exclusive one, opens the door for another team to sign the player if the original club does not match. When that happens, the team losing the player collects on two first-round picks.
Bell, 25, is arguably the best running back in the NFL. Had he reached unrestricted free agency, Bell probably would have become the highest-paid tailback in the NFL, considering that Adrian Peterson‘s current deal is days away from being terminated.
In 12 games last year, Bell ran for 1,268 yards off of 261 carries (4.9 yards per attempt) and had seven rushing touchdowns. Bell was often utilized as a receiver too, totaling 75 catches for 616 yards and two scores. As if that wasn’t enough, Pro Football Focus gave him the sixth-highest pass blocking grade of any running back in the NFL last year. His overall grade, naturally, was No. 1 amongst RBs.
Ingram, Johnson To Be Franchise Tagged?
Melvin Ingram and Trumaine Johnson are among the players expected to be franchise tagged between now and March 1, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter). Schefter also lists Kirk Cousins, Le’Veon Bell, Kawann Short as guys who are likely to get the tag. 
While Cousins, Bell, and Short have long been seen as likely franchise candidates, things were less certain when it came to California’s two top free agents. Ingram has racked up 18.5 sacks over the past two seasons, but the Chargers have lots of holes to fill and some believed that the team would direct those resources elsewhere. Johnson, meanwhile, is coming off of a so-so season and the Rams will have to pay a surcharge in order to tag him for a second time.
It’s likely that the latest salary cap projection is playing a role in the decisions. It now sounds like the cap will land somewhere between $166MM and $169MM, up from $155.27MM last year. The one-year franchise tenders are expensive, but they are easier to swallow now that all 32 teams will have a little extra room to work with.
Our most recent edition of the Free Agent Power Rankings had Ingram as the fourth-best free agent on the board. Johnson was outside of the Top 10 but earned honorable mention.
Steelers, Antonio Brown Move Towards Deal
The Steelers and Antonio Brown are making significant progress towards a big-money extension, sources tell Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). The goal is for the deal to be completed by March 9th. 
If the two sides can agree to terms before the start of free agency, the Steelers will have a better idea of their spending room before dollars start flying.
A new deal for Brown will presumably reset the market for wide receivers, even though it would be an extension one year prior to Brown’s potential entry into free agency. The 28-year-old (29 in July) is the NFL’s best receiver and coming off of his third consecutive first-team All-Pro selection. He has matched or exceeded 100 catches, 1,200 yards and eight touchdowns in each of the past four seasons. Teams have asked about acquiring Brown via trade, but the Steelers have firmly rejected all overtures.
Currently, Julio Jones leads all wide receivers in terms of total contract value ($71.25MM overall), per-year average ($14.25MM per year), and total guaranteed cash ($35.5MM). After him, Demaryius Thomas and Dez Bryant are tied or roughly tied in those categories, with Thomas holding a slight edge in total guaranteed money.
Brown is currently signed through 2017 with a cap charge of roughly $13.6MM.
Dulac: Steelers' Top Offseason Priority Is Pass-Rushing OLB
- Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette writes that the biggest objective for the Steelers this offseason is to find an outside linebacker that can generate consistent pressure on opposing quarterbacks. Bud Dupree showed some promise down the stretch in 2016, but Jarvis Jones is unlikely to return, and if the club re-signs the ageless James Harrison, Dulac believes it would not make much sense to acquire another veteran free agent OLB. As such, he writes that Pittsburgh could once again address the position in the first round of the draft.