The Steelers are now in their offseason after failing to reach the playoffs in 2022, coming up just a game short of sneaking in as the seventh seed. They needed help in week 18 and only got some of it, so instead, they sat home and watched the playoffs with the rest of us.
On tap is figuring out how to be on the field in January and February instead of being a spectator. They started out 2-6, digging a hole that proved too deep to dig out of even if they managed to go 7-2 in the second half of the year.
Starting from the end of the regular season and leading all the way up to the beginning of the 2023 season, there are plenty of questions that need answering, starting with who will be the offensive coordinator. Which free agents will be kept? Who might be let go due to their salary? How might they tackle free agency with this new front office? We’ll try to frame the conversation in relevant ways as long as you stick with us throughout this offseason, as we have for many years.
Question: Will the Steelers consider signing anybody to an extension other than Alex Highsmith this offseason?
One of the most important items on the agenda of every NFL team during the offseason is negotiating contract extensions for players they’ve identified as cornerstone pieces in some way. The Steelers always try to lock up such players early, as they’ve recently done with T.J. Watt and Minkah Fitzpatrick.
Alex Highsmith is the next name on that list this offseason, but could they consider extending anybody else before the start of the new league year?
The list of players whose contracts expire at the end of next season outside of Highsmith is not the most notable, truth be told, but it doesn’t always have to be high-end starters who get extensions. Myles Jack and Mitch Trubisky are two interesting names to consider, but we lack clarity on just what the team thinks of them.
They would be incentivized to get extensions done with either one because they have relatively high cap numbers for the 2023 season. Adding years to their deals would almost invariably result in a lower 2023 cap number.
Both Levi Wallace and Ahkello Witherspoon fit into the category of 2024 free agent as well. What if they decide to cut one and extend the other? But arguably the most notable name might be left guard Kevin Dotson.
Extensions rarely get done before the Steelers break for the summer ahead of training camp, so this is really a question for months from now, but it’s worth considering because it’s something they have to think about now. And it will help color what plans they formulate in free agency and the draft.
