The official legal tampering window for NFL free agents opens on March 11, which should cause the movement period in the NFL to really get going in a hurry.
Prior to the start of the legal tampering window, the Pittsburgh Steelers have quite a few holes on the roster and plenty of cap space to try and plug those holes ahead of the 2024 NFL Draft.
Though it’s very unlikely they’ll go for big-name signings, the Steelers could do a fair amount of business in free agency under GM Omar Khan and assistant GM Andy Weidl.
For the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Ray Fittipaldo, in response to a reader in his latest chat, the Steelers will be targeting starters at inside linebacker and cornerback in free agency. They could also look for a No. 3 receiver and might add some depth along the defensive line to shore up concerns there some.
“ILB and CB — targeting starters. A No. 3 WR. Maybe a DL,” Fittipaldo wrote when a reader asked what positions he believes the Steelers will target in free agency, according to post-gazette.com.
Those two positions are arguably the biggest needs on the defense at this time.
With Cole Holcomb’s recovery timeline from a knee injury suffered in Week 9 last season unclear at this time and Elandon Roberts and Mark Robinson the only healthy and experienced inside linebackers on the roster, the position is a huge need.
Free agency could provide an answer or two for the Steelers — again.
Blake Cashman, Drue Tranquill, Tyrel Dodson and Josey Jewell are names that have been connected to the Steelers as potential good fits on the open market as are names like Frankie Luvu, Azeez Al-Shaair, Devin White and Kenneth Murray. Though those players aren’t exactly franchise changing, they can provide answers at the position for the Steelers for 2024, and at an affordable rate, too.
Then there’s cornerback.
Joey Porter Jr. emerged as a great building block for the Steelers at the position, developing quickly into a true shutdown corner for the Black and Gold. But with Levi Wallace, James Pierre and Chandon Sullivan set to hit free agency and some uncertainty with Patrick Peterson, the position is a major need.
There has been some speculation about L’Jarius Sneed and Jaylon Johnson as fits for the Steelers, but both were franchised tagged and would cost a pretty penny. Names like Kendall Fuller, Adoree’ Jackson, Sean Murphy-Bunting, Dane Jackson and Kristian Fulton could be fits in free agency, too, as could players like Rock Ya-Sin and Tre Herndon.
Like linebacker, cornerback is a talented position in free agency and the Steelers could dip into that position again on the open market.
Wide receiver and defensive line might need addressed by the Steelers, too, though realistic options there for them feel more limited than linebacker and cornerback.
Fittipaldo believes though that when the Steelers make another foray into free agency, they’ll be searching for starters, something they did last offseason, too. It’s not the best way to build a team, nor the preferred way for the Steelers to do it, but free agency is a key mechanism to use in shoring things up.
We’ll see what Khan and the Steelers have in store.
