It’s been a few weeks since I last updated the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 2024 salary cap situation. Now, with the signings of a few additional players to the roster such as CB Cameron Sutton and first-round draft pick OT Troy Fautanu, we can now take a look at the team’s 2024 salary cap situation with one draft pick yet to be signed.
First, let the record show that I am still waiting on the official injury settlement amount for former WR Keilahn Harris. Even so, that amount shouldn’t be much at all once it comes in. There could be another small injury settlement on the horizon for CB Luq Barcoo as well. We will find out for sure next week.
Currently, the Steelers’ Rule of 51 total for 2024 sits at $240,743,018. That amount includes a dead money total of $24,381,069. That means that the Steelers are now $16,997,174 under the cap when it comes to their Rule of 51 total and with just one member of their 2024 draft class not under contract. Additionally, that amount does not include the outstanding injury settlement amount. That $16,997,174 matches the latest NFLPA update as well.
While $16,997,174 is certainly quite a bit of available salary cap space, roughly $576,675 of that needs to be earmarked for the signing of C Zach Frazier. Additionally, the NFLPA has yet to charge the annual offseason workout bonus placeholder amount of $907,200. Once the dust clears after mandatory minicamp, it’s a good bet that the Steelers’ offseason workout bonus amount will come in way lower than $907,200.
Obviously, the Steelers will still need to be able to accommodate a full practice squad roster and a 52nd and 53rd player. Those accommodations will likely require right around $5.6 million of salary cap space. Additionally. the Steelers are likely going to want to have right around $6 million in free salary cap space at the start of the 2024 regular season. On top of everything else, it’s always good to budget for a few players to start the 2024 regular season on the Reserve/Injured list. Two million dollars is normally a good placeholder when it comes to that.
In the updated and tabled breakdown of the Steelers’ current 2024 salary cap situation, I now have the team with $1,923,299 in effective salary cap space based on all other projections of somewhat predictable costs forthcoming the remainder of the summer. It is important to point out that the Steelers can always choose to restructure the contract of S Minkah Fitzpatrick later this summer. That restructuring, if needed, can clear up to $8,916,667 in additional 2024 salary cap space.
With mandatory minicamp now on the horizon, I am still expecting the Steelers to sign TE Pat Freiermuth to a contract extension before the start of the 2024 regular season. Should that happen, Freiermuth’s 2024 cap charge of $1,918,057 is likely to increase some. Some, but not a ton.
We will also wait and see if the Steelers sign RB Najee Harris to a contract extension before the 2024 regular season starts. That’s not an unthinkable notion, even though I would bet against it happening. Currently, Harris is carrying a 2024 salary cap charge of $4,151,460. If Harris were to sign a contract extension later this summer, his 2024 salary cap charge might even decrease slightly as a byproduct. At the very worst, the 2024 salary cap charge for Harris would likely remain roughly close to what it is currently.
We also wait to see what the Steelers wind up doing with DT Cameron Heyward moving forward. Regardless, any sort of contract extension that Heyward winds up signing, assuming he does sign one, is likely to result in his 2024 salary cap charge decreasing some. How much it decreases will depend on several different variables. A Heyward 2024 cap charge decrease, assuming it happens, could ultimately result in the Steelers not having to restructure Fitzpatrick’s contract later in the summer.
There are other extension contract extension candidates such as QB Justin Fields. We will need to wait and see what happens with him. For the most part, however, don’t expect a lot of contract extensions to happen between now and the start of the 2024 regular season.
As is usually the case beyond mandatory minicamp, we could see the Steelers ultimately add another player, two, or three via a trade or signing as we progress through the offseason. As I have noted several times on this site, the Steelers have a long history of adding players to their roster after mandatory minicamp finishes.
If the Steelers were to add an expensive player moving forward, obviously it would likely be a wide receiver and likely via some sort of trade. At this point, however, any trade the Steelers make is likely to happen after June ends, if one even happens at all.
In summation for this update, the Steelers are in fine shape right now when it comes to their 2024 salary cap situation. They are also fine on cash spending as well, and I suspect more of that is coming between now and the start of the 2024 regular season.
Watching what course the Steelers choose with their cap and cash situations from this point forward will be fun to see play out as there are several different routes they can take when it comes to contract extensions and player additions.
After the team gets Frazier signed to his rookie deal, I’ll provide a new salary cap update. I will, however, provide another update sooner should something monumental happen.
