Ladarius Green Still Sidelined
- Ladarius Green signed a four-year, $20MM contract with the Steelers but has not practiced a down with them yet after January ankle surgery. With that in mind, Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette wonders if the Steelers made a mistake with their major free agent signing. As shown on Roster Resource, the Steelers’ TE depth chart beyond Green leaves a lot to be desired. Jesse James has minimal game experience, Xavier Grimble never has played an NFL game, and Michael Cooper and Paul Lang are undrafted rookies. H-back David Johnson has experience, but mostly as a blocker. If Green is going to miss significant time, one has to wonder if the Steelers will be in the market for a tight end addition.
Opinion: Steelers Should Have Signed Veteran CB
Though they were up against the salary cap, the Steelers should have explored signing a free agent corner this offseason, opines Paul Zeise of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Any semblance of secondary depth Pittsburgh may have had is quickly being depleted, as second-year pro Senquez Golson — who missed his entire rookie season with injuries — is likely to be out for most (or all) of the 2016 campaign after undergoing Lisfranc surgery. This year’s first-round pick, cornerback Artie Burns, wasn’t expected to contribute much during the upcoming season, but he’s also been dinged up. A few veteran corners, such as Chris Culliver and Leon Hall, have come off the open market in recent days, so if the Steelers were interested in adding another option, they’d be looking at options such as Antonio Cromartie, Cortland Finnegan, Cary Williams, and Tarell Brown.
- Earlier today, we learned that the Steelers are unlikely to work out a new deal with receiver Antonio Brown in 2016, given that the club has a policy not to renegotiate with non-quarterbacks that aren’t entering their contract year. Brown currently earns $8.4MM annually, 18th among wide receivers.
New Deal For Steelers’ Antonio Brown Unlikely
Antonio Brown is one of the most lethal offensive players in the NFL and is paid far below his talent level. Still, Brown has two years to go on his contract and the Steelers have been insistent that they will not discuss a new deal with him at this time. Recently, the team engaged in talks with Brown’s agent, but it doesn’t appear that the organization is going to give in to the wide receiver’s requests. The two sides are not talking at this time and it is very unlikely that the Steelers would entertain a new deal for Brown in 2016, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (on Twitter). 
The Steelers have a policy not to renegotiate with non-quarterbacks until the final year of a player’s deal and they do not want to make an exception for anyone – even a megastar like Brown. Universally considered an elite wide receiver, Brown is ranked 18th among wide receivers in terms of average annual compensation ($8.4MM/year). A quick look at the 17 receivers ahead of Brown shows that he has a legitimate case to be paid better (data via of Over The Cap):
- A.J. Green, Bengals – $15MM/year
- Alshon Jeffery, Bears – $14.599MM/year
- Julio Jones, Falcons – $14.25MM/year
- Demaryius Thomas, Broncos – $14MM/year
- Dez Bryant, Cowboys – $14MM/year
- T.Y. Hilton, Colts – $13MM/year
- Doug Baldwin, Seahawks – $11.5MM/year
- Keenan Allen, Chargers – $11.25MM/year
- Vincent Jackson, Buccaneers – $11.111MM
- Larry Fitzgerald, Cardinals – $11MM/year
- Jeremy Maclin, Chiefs – $11MM/year
- Allen Hurns, Jaguars – $10MM/year
- Randall Cobb, Packers – $10MM/year
- Jordy Nelson, Packers – $9.76MM/year
- Brandon Marshall, Jets – $8.67MM/year
- Michael Crabtree, Raiders – $8.5MM/year
- Pierre Garcon, Redskins – $8.5MM/year
Of course, Brown doesn’t have a ton of leverage with two years before he can potentially hit the open market. In all likelihood, Brown won’t get the big deal he is seeking until next year.
Steelers’ Senquez Golson Undergoes Surgery
AUGUST 8: Golson underwent surgery today and is expected to miss four months, tweets Dulac.
AUGUST 2, 7:47pm: The timeline on Golson is closer to four months, according to Ed Bouchette and Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, and if Goldon requires surgery, he’ll likely miss the entire season.
11:21am: Bad news for the Steelers as cornerback Senquez Golson has a lisfranc injury which could sideline him for 12 weeks, according to Ian Rapoport and Aditi Kinkhabwala of NFL.com (on Twitter). Golson is now a candidate to be placed on IR-DTR, according to Rapoport.
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Golson, a 2015 second-round pick, missed all of last season after undergoing season-ending shoulder surgery last August. This time around, the injury doesn’t appear to be as severe, but it is still troubling for the Ole Miss product who has yet to see time in an NFL game. The injury could also prompt Pittsburgh to take a look at available cornerbacks on the open market. Behind projected starters William Gay and first-round pick Artie Burns, the Steelers also have Ross Cockrell, 2015 fourth-round pick Doran Grant, Montell Garner, and Al-Hajj Shabazz on the cornerback depth chart. Antonio Cromartie and Leon Hall are among the cornerbacks still available at this stage of the offseason.
Golson was selected with the No. 56 overall pick in last year’s draft. The 5’9″ athlete started 33 of his 49 games in college and recorded 136 tackles and 16 interceptions. His 16 picks led all NCAA active defensive players and tied for third most in school history. Golson led the SEC with ten interceptions in 2014, second-most in the NCAA, and tied an Ole Miss single-season record.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Steelers Remove Schooley From IR
- The Steelers removed Quinton Schooley from their injured reserve with an injury settlement, as Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle tweets.
Lance Moore Retires From Football
Just days after signing with the Falcons, wide receiver Lance Moore has announced his retirement from the NFL, according to a press release from the team. 
Moore, who entered the league as a UDFA in 2005, played for three different teams during his ten year career, spending eight seasons with the Saints. During his time with the Saints, he recorded 346 receptions for 4,281 yards and 38 touchdowns. Moore tallied 389 career receptions for 4,816 yards and 44 touchdowns in his career.
Moore, who turns 33 later this month, auditioned for the Chargers recently before the team ultimately chose to sign James Jones instead. On Friday, the veteran reached agreement on a deal with the Falcons. Apparently, Moore had a change of heart over the weekend and opted to hang ’em up instead.
Moore was a favored target of Drew Brees‘ for years before he was released by the team in March 2014. In 2013, Moore’s receptions (37), receiving yards (457), and receiving touchdowns (two) were his worst totals since an injury-plagued 2009. Unfortunately, things didn’t pick up when he joined the Steelers. In 2014, he caught just 14 balls with Pittsburgh, matching his lowest total since his rookie year. Following that disappointing season, he asked for his release and then hooked on with the Lions. His performance was roughly the same there as he caught 29 passes for 337 yards and four touchdowns.
We here at PFR wish Moore all the best in retirement.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
NFL Plans On Interviewing James Harrison Regarding PED Use
- Following a 2015 Al Jazeera America documentary that linked multiple players to PED use, the NFL is still planning on interviewing those players about the accusations, reports ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter (via Twitter). Schefter lists Steelers linebacker James Harrison and Packers linebackers Clay Matthews and Julius Peppers, although the documentary also linked free agent linebacker Mike Neal and former tight end Dustin Keller.
[SOURCE LINK]
Steelers Make Four Roster Moves
- The Steelers have signed free agent receiver Cobi Hamilton and waived fellow wideout Canaan Severin, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link) and Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.com. They also made a pair of moves at tight end, signing free agent Michael Cooper and cutting Jake Phillips (via Mark Kaboly of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, on Twitter).
Latest On Steelers’ Contract Negotiations
While Steelers cornerstones Le’Veon Bell, Lawrence Timmons and Markus Wheaton are all in contract years, the only free agent-to-be the team is negotiating an extension with is guard David DeCastro, reports Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The Steelers and DeCastro were reportedly making progress in talks as of Wednesday, but Bouchette writes that a deal isn’t close. The deadline for an agreement is the start of the season, which leaves the two sides just over a month to find common ground.
The 26-year-old DeCastro has established himself as one of the core pieces of the Steelers’ offensive line since the team used a first-round pick on him in 2012. DeCastro has started all but one game over the the last three seasons, and he’s coming off a year in which he earned Pro Bowl and All-Pro selections for the first time. DeCastro, whom Pro Football Focus has graded as one of the league’s 20 best guards three years running, is on the Steelers’ books this season for $8.07MM. That’s the cost of the fifth-year option that was included in the 24th overall pick’s rookie deal.
Considering the turbulent year Bell has endured, it’s not surprising that the Steelers aren’t negotiating with him. The star running back is currently preparing to appeal the four-game suspension the NFL handed him in July for a violation of its substance abuse policy. If Bell loses the appeal hearing, which is scheduled for Aug. 18, it’ll mark his second suspension since last season. Bell sat out two games then thanks to an arrest for marijuana possession and DUI, and he missed the final eight contests of the year after tearing his MCL and PCL on Nov. 1. It perhaps didn’t help Bell’s cause that the Steelers’ offense showed well without him, finishing with the eighth-best yards-per-carry average in the league.
Timmons, meanwhile, is about to conclude the $48MM contract he signed with Pittsburgh in 2011. The Steelers have restructured that deal three times, leaving the 30-year-old with an unpalatable $15.1MM cap hit this season. A 2007 first-rounder, Timmons has spent his entire nine-year career in Pittsburgh – where he has racked up 33 sacks (five last season) – but 2016 could be his swan song with the Steelers.
Wheaton, 25, put up a whopping 17.0 yards per catch on 44 receptions and added five touchdowns in 2015. Previously, he amassed a career-high 53 grabs in 2014, though both his YPC (12.2) and TD total (two) were much less impressive. Wheaton is due to collect just over $1.67MM this year, but if he continues to post strong production, a significant raise will come – whether from Pittsburgh or someone else. The fact that Martavis Bryant will miss the entire season because of a suspension could lead to more opportunities and better numbers for Wheaton, who garnered a combined 166 targets over the previous two years.
Unlike the aforementioned players, wideout Antonio Brown isn’t in a contract year, though the elite-caliber weapon would like a deal more in line with his production. After tying for the league lead in receptions (136), finishing second in yards (1,834) and scoring 10 times last season, Brown is slated to earn $6.25MM this year and $8.71MM in 2017. He’s just 18th among receivers in average annual value, but Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert isn’t about to rip his contract up in favor of a richer one.
As was the case last year, the Steelers could advance Brown $2MM of his salary for 2017, notes Bouchette. They would then have the option of awarding him a new contract after the season. Doing that would enable the Steelers to maintain their long-held policy of not negotiating new accords with players who have more than one year remaining on their deals. Quarterbacks are the only exception to that rule, and Ben Roethlisberger is already locked up through 2019.
Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Steelers, Antonio Brown Discuss Contract
The agent for Antonio Brown and Steelers GM Kevin Colbert have begun discussing the wide receiver’s contract situation, ESPN.com’s Jeremy Fowler writes. Brown still has two years to go on his contract but has been pushing for a pay bump. The Steelers, meanwhile, have a policy not to renegotiate with non-quarterbacks until the final year of a player’s deal. 
[RELATED: Steelers, David DeCastro Resume Contract Talks]
“We believe in our philosophy,” Colbert said recently, with regards to the team’s policy. “I don’t see that changing, but I’ll never address a player individually.”
Brown is slated to earn a guaranteed base of $6.25MM this year and $8.71MM in 2017 before potentially hitting the open market. Widely regarded as one of the very best wide receivers in the NFL, Brown is outside of the top ten at his position in terms of pay. In fact, Brown is No. 18 in terms of average annual value, putting him behind the likes of Pierre Garcon, Michael Crabtree, Allen Hurns, Vincent Jackson, and Doug Baldwin.
Last year, the Steelers restructured Brown’s deal to move $2MM of future salary into 2015. While Brown says that he appreciated that gesture, he is looking for something much more meaningful this time. The Steelers certainly want to keep Brown happy, but so far they have been unwilling to set a precedent by reworking his deal so far out from its expiration.
Brown tied for the league lead in receptions (136), finished second in yards (1,834), and found the end zone 10 times last season.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.