The days left on the roster of the Pittsburgh Steelers for veteran safety Morgan Burnett are indeed numbered.
According to Adam Schefter of ESPN on Friday, the Steelers have informed Burnett that they will release him by April 1, per the player’s request, said his agent Kevin Conner. Burnett was reportedly told his release would occur Wednesday, but the Steelers claim accounting issues will delay it another week.
None of this news is a surprise. The only surprise when it comes to Burnett is that he hasn’t been released already.
Burnett, who signed a three year, $14.35 million free agent contract with the Steelers on March 20, 2018, had reportedly asked the Steelers to release him several weeks ago as he didn’t like the way he was used last season. In the 11 games that he played in last season, Burnett registered just 30 total tackles to go along with 6 passes defensed. He missed four games early in the season due to a groin injury and another game later in the season due to a back issue.
Burnett is currently scheduled to earn a base salary of $5 million in 2019 in addition to a $50,000 offseason workout bonus. The Steelers will save $3,633,332 in 2019 salary cap space by releasing Burnett without designating him a post June 1 release. If, however, the team does designate him a post June 1 release, $5.05 million in 2019 salary cap space will eventually be saved later in the summer prior to roster displacement.
In the 11 games that he played in last season, Burnett registered just 30 total tackles to go along with 6 passes defensed. He missed four games early in the season due to a groin injury and another game later in the season due to a back issue.
