The Pittsburgh Steelers’ 2021 season is underway, and they are hoping for a better outcome in comparison to last season. After starting out 11-0, they finished the year 1-4 in the regular season, and then lost in the Wildcard Round to the Cleveland Browns, ignited by a 0-28 first quarter.
They have lost a large number of key players in the offseason, like Maurkice Pouncey, Bud Dupree, Alejandro Villanueva, David DeCastro, Mike Hilton, and Steven Nelson, but they’ve also made significant additions as the months have gone on, notably Trai Turner, Melvin Ingram, Joe Schobert, and Ahkello Witherspoon. They also added Najee Harris, Pat Freiermuth, Kendrick Green, and Dan Moore Jr., all of whom are starting.
There isn’t much left to do but to play the games at this point. Even if they play them poorly. They still have a lot to figure out, though, such as what Matt Canada’s offense is going to look like in any given week, or how the new-look secondary and offensive line is going to play.
These are the sorts of questions among many others that we have been exploring on a daily basis and will continue to do so. Football has become a year-round pastime and there is always a question to be asked. There is rarely a concrete answer, but this is your venue for exploring the topics we present through all their uncertainty.
Question: At what price would the Steelers pull the trigger on trading Melvin Ingram?
With the NFL’s trade deadline nearing, we have seen a slight trickle of movement around the league. An earlier report has suggested that the Steelers are getting calls about Melvin Ingram, the veteran former Pro Bowl pass rusher. And we have also been told that they are, at least, listening.
Pittsburgh signed Ingram shortly before the start of training camp on a one-year, $4 million deal, which was sort of a prove-it arrangement. A player of his caliber generally doesn’t have to settle for such a contract, but he’s coming off of injury and a season in which he recorded zero sacks.
But he has shown since he first stepped on the practice field that he can still contribute at a high level, and he has been a valuable member of their pass-rushing platoon, even as the duo of T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith prepare to kick into high gear now that their groins are healthy.
So if they really are listening to potential offers for Ingram, the question is, what is it that they have to hear at the other end of the line to be willing to pull the trigger? They understand by now the importance of having edge depth, after all, which is why they signed him in the first place. They’ve also signed Taco Charlton to the practice squad.
Would they entertain anything less than a fourth-round pick at this point? Or is the fact that seven weeks of the season are already gone going to knock off some of that price tag? The Steelers gave up a fifth-round pick for Avery Williamson near the deadline last year.
