The Pittsburgh Steelers have released center Mason Cole, the team announced today. The move leaves the Steelers in search of a new starting center.
The move frees up $3.995 million in 2024 salary cap space due to Rule of 51.
Cole had a solid 2022 season, his first with the team, but took a big step back in 2023, with issues snapping the ball and blocking. Center appeared to be a position the Steelers would look to upgrade this offseason, but there was still a chance that they kept Cole either as a backup or as an option while they explored the center market. But the team decided to move on early in the offseason, continuing a trend that started last week when the team released three players: OT Chukwuma Okorafor, QB Mitch Trubisky and P Pressley Harvin III.
Signed as a free agent ahead of the 2022 season, Cole started all 17 games each of the last two seasons at center. But with one year left on his contract, the team has decided to move on, and he will look to find a new home for 2024. The Steelers now do not have a reliable option at center on their roster, and there’s little doubt that they’ll be players in free agency or the draft for a new starting center. Oregon’s Jackson Powers-Johnson is a first-round talent at center, and West Virginia’s Zach Frazier is someone who the Steelers could be interested in on Day 2.
Cole began his career with the Arizona Cardinals, who selected him in the third round of the 2018 NFL Draft out of Michigan. After three seasons in Arizona, Cole was with the Minnesota Vikings for the 2021 season prior to signing a three-year deal with Pittsburgh as part of an effort to revamp the team’s offensive line. Cole replaced Kendrick Green, who struggled as Pittsburgh’s center during his rookie season in 2021 and was dealt to the Houston Texans prior to the 2023 season.
With Cole’s release, the only center on Pittsburgh’s roster is Ryan McCollum, who spent parts of 2022 and all of 2023 on Pittsburgh’s practice squad. The team recently signed him to a futures contract.
