The re-signing of Pittsburgh Steelers safety Robert Golden on Monday shouldn’t come as a big surprise being as the team certainly needed to shore up the position for 2016 prior to the start of the new league year. With Golden now under contract, Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported on Twitter Monday that the Steelers are not expected re-sign veteran safety Will Allen.
Dulac’s report is not overly surprising and especially being as Allen will turn 34 years of age in June. However, should the Steelers ultimately decide to bring Allen back to compete for a roster spot later this offseason, they can probably do so with a one-year contract for the veteran league minimum that would come with a discounted salary cap charge as part of the veteran minimum salary benefit in the CBA.
While Allen is not likely to be back in 2016, the re-signing of Golden on Monday should not immediately impact the offseason future of fellow Steelers safety Shamarko Thomas, who is about to enter the final year of his rookie contract. Thomas, who is scheduled to count $788,288 against the Steelers 2016 salary cap, has mostly been used as a special teams player for most of his career in Pittsburgh.
Thomas will more than likely be given a chance to compete for a roster spot in training camp later on this year and that competition figures to included a drafted safety.
