Buy Or Sell: Nate Herbig will be a surprise roster cut.
Explanation: The Steelers parted with two offensive linemen from last year’s roster but added three during the draft. Unless one of the rookies fails to make the squad, there has to be an odd man out. Zach Frazier seems set to start at center, meaning Nate Herbig is destined for a reserve position again. His $4 million base salary could, accordingly, make him expendable as the Steelers’ young depth grows.
Buy:
Nate Herbig’s contract always hovered in that fringe starter range. The Steelers seemed to have signed him before they knew they were about to land Isaac Seumalo as a starter. But they couldn’t cut him right away after giving him a signing bonus. Now on the back half of that deal, they have substantial savings incentive to cut him.
Herbig is due to earn $4 million to serve as a backup interior offensive lineman. But they have young, growing linemen who can do that job. That’s why they kept Spencer Anderson and Dylan Cook last year. Omar Khan talked about drafting Mason McCormick as a potential replacement for James Daniels in the starting lineup in 2025. Obviously they have a high opinion of him, and he’s as center-capable as Herbig is.
Sell:
Nate Herbig is no guaranteed cut candidate. For one thing, Zach Frazier still has to earn a starting job. You don’t earn anything without pads on. And he is the only one in this young group who actually has experience.
Sure, it’s nice to think about what the Steelers may have in Cook or Anderson or McCormick, but that’s all projection. There’s nothing saying any of them are any better than Herbig, who has 30 NFL starts and half a decade of experience behind him.
The Steelers know they erred in trading Kevin Dotson last year, because he was clearly one of their nine best offensive linemen, and they didn’t get quality return on investment. Herbig isn’t suddenly going to become a top interior offensive lineman, but $4 million isn’t too high a price. Depth seems worthless without injuries, but priceless with them. How much fans care about depth seems to fluctuate based on the injury situation of the previous season.
With the Steelers’ 2023 season in the rearview mirror following a disappointing year that came up short in the playoffs once again, it’s time to start asking more questions. Questions about the team’s future in 2024 and beyond. Questions about The Standard.
The rookie class of a year ago was on the whole impressive, but they need to step up into staple starters in 2024. And they likely need a strong influx of talent in both free agency and in the 2024 NFL Draft yet again. In addition to a revisitation of the coaching staff.
These sorts of uncertainties are what I will look to address in our Buy or Sell series. In each installment, I will introduce a topic statement and weigh some of the arguments for either buying it (meaning that you agree with it or expect it to be true) or selling it (meaning you disagree with it or expect it to be false).
