The Pittsburgh Steelers have been surprisingly busy in free agency so far under GM Omar Khan, signing the likes of Cornerback Patrick Peterson, linebacker Cole Holcomb, interior offensive lineman Nate Herbig, safety Damontae Kazee and defensive tackle Larry Ogunjobi in recent days.
Movement continued from the Steelers Thursday morning as the team signed linebacker Elandon Roberts and cut linebacker Myles Jack. For star defensive tackle Cameron Heyward, who continues to chase a Super Bowl ring to cap off his Hall of Fame-caliber career, the moves the Steelers have made so far has him pretty excited.
Appearing on his podcast “Not Just Football w/ Cameron Heyward,” the Steelers’ star stated in a teaser video from his latest podcast that the recent moves from the franchise “makes for a good recipe.”
“Getting Larry back was huge. I’m excited to just keep growing with him. We’re building something special. I think he’s just gonna feel more and more comfortable in this scheme and he is gonna benefit from it,” Heyward said to his co-host Hayden Walsh regarding the re-signing of Ogunjobi. “We bring a guy in like Patrick Peterson. You can look through his resume and you see he’s one of the top corners. He brings, not only his play, but his leadership as well. The last guy we got was Cole Holcomb. He seems like a really good kid, athletic.
“I know he was injured this past year, but the year before he was kicking a lot of tails. So you add these guys back into the mix, I think it makes for a good recipe so far.”
How good that recipe tastes will be determined on the field, but the moves the Steelers have made so far in free agency certainly make sense on paper.
The addition of Peterson to a two-year, $14 million deal came just hours after the Steelers lost Cameron Sutton to the Detroit Lions. While he will be 33 years old at the start of the season, he is a smart, cerebral player that will be a good mentor for the Steelers’ secondary, which will likely include a cornerback that is a high draft pick.
Retaining Ogunjobi at that salary was a surprise, but it’s a major one for the Steelers as the defensive line was decimated entering free agency, and really wasn’t that good last season behind Heyward and Ogunjobi.
As for Holcomb, he is an upgrade on Robert Spillane and Devin Bush, which addresses a serious need for the Steelers. If he can stay healthy, the Steelers have a sound run stopper at the position with great athletic traits overall.
So far though, the Steelers have been far more aggressive and active in free agency than anyone could have really expected.
