Even though many of you are wanting the Pittsburgh Steelers to part ways with cornerback Cortez Allen sooner rather than later, I have wrote several times that you should be prepared for him to be back in training camp later in the summer. While team president Art Rooney II didn’t talk specifically about Allen on Thursday during his annual post-season meeting with the local media, he did hint that the former fourth-round draft pick out the Citadel will be given a chance to win back his starting job.
According to Will Graves of the Associated Press, Rooney said Thursday that players the team currently has a significant financial stake in can and will be given more opportunities to prove themselves. While Graves tried to ask specifically if that includes Allen, Rooney wouldn’t name names.
If indeed Rooney is talking about Allen, it makes sense as the team will only save $1.7 million in salary cap space prior to roster displacement should they release the underachieving cornerback prior to June 1. Should, however, Allen be kept throughout the offseason and ultimately fail to reclaim his starting job during training camp, the Steelers can release him prior to the start of the 2016 regular season and in the process clear $4.4 million in cap space prior to roster displacement taking place. A post June 1 release, however, would then result in the team carrying a $2.7 million dead money charge for Allen in 2017.
The Steelers signed Allen to a four-year, $24.6 million contract extension prior to the start of the 2014 season. Since that time he has made just 8 starts and has landed on the team’s Reserve/Injured list two seasons in a row because of knee injuries.
