Recognizing the cap issues Ben Roethlisberger’s contract presents, Kevin Colbert was non-committal to Roethlisberger’s future with the team. Speaking with reporters for roughly 30 minutes Wednesday, Colbert addressed Roethlisberger’s status going forward.
While Colbert said Roethlisberger can still play, he reiterated a need to re-work his $41 million cap charge to have a chance to move forward together.
The 2021 salary cap number is still not known and likely won’t be announced for several more weeks. The expectation is that it comes in above the floor of $175 million. But how much higher than that is unknown. Without that number, it’s hard for the Steelers to accurately create a roadmap of their 2021 roster.
Colbert admitted the obvious. There’s plenty of work to be done in order to get this team in position to make a run next season.
Colbert would apparently only go so far as to say Roethlisberger is currently a member of the Steelers. Of course, his contract runs through 2021 so if the Steelers move on, they’ll either have to cut him or convince him to retire a la Troy Polamalu.
Colbert also told reporters he’s met with Roethlisberger and his agent but they had yet to begin negotiations.
Roethlisberger has expressed every desire to return for at least one more season. He and his agent have said they’ll work with the Steelers in any fashion for him to come back. Roethlisberger went as far as to say he didn’t care what his pay next year would be. Earlier in the week, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler said everyone he talked to believed Roethlisberger would return for one more year.
Pittsburgh will have to come up with a resolution in the next few weeks before Roethlisberger’s roster bonus is due on the third day of the 2021 league year. That date is March 20th.
