The Pittsburgh Steelers have placed ILB Cole Holcomb on the Reserve/PUP list, meaning he will miss at least the first four games of the 2024 season. It’s been an anticipated move after the team renegotiated his contract earlier this summer, creating a split salary clause. The move stems from the serious knee injury Holcomb suffered last November against the Tennessee Titans. The team announced the move after making its final roster cuts today.
Holcomb suffered the injury after colliding with S Keanu Neal in coverage. Carted off the field, Holcomb spent the night at a local hospital before being discharged. On the long road to recovery, Holcomb posted encouraging workout videos showing him rehabbing with only a sleeve on his injured knee. But he wasn’t cleared for the start of training camp and missed the entire summer. Now, he’ll miss at least the first four weeks of the Steelers’ 2024 season and potentially longer. There’s been no indication when Holcomb will return or if he’ll even make his way back sometime during the season.
Signed ahead of the 2023 season to a three-year, $18 million deal, Holcomb was having an impactful season before getting hurt. In eight games, he notched 54 tackles (four for a loss), with two forced fumbles, two pass deflections, two QB hits, and one fumble recovery. Despite the Steelers’ three-man inside linebacker rotation, Holcomb was logging nearly 90 percent of the snaps per game.
On Aug. 2, NFL reporter Aaron Wilson tweeted that the Steelers and Cole Holcomb had adjusted his contract. Dave Bryan explained what it appeared to mean.
“It sounds like the Steelers got Holcomb to agree to a split salary clause of $3.1 million for 2024 and then guaranteed it. Meaning, if Holcomb needs to go on the Reserve/Injured list in 2024, and possibly even on the Reserve/PUP list as well, his base salary charge would drop from $6 million to $3.1 million for 2024. This would wind up being a salary cap savings for the Steelers as well, if I have interpreted the report correctly.”
Pittsburgh made big changes to its inside linebacker room this offseason, signing top free agent linebacker Patrick Queen to a franchise-record deal for an outsider. They also drafted NC State linebacker Payton Wilson, a first-round talent who fell to the third round due to age and medical concerns. Along with Elandon Roberts, the Steelers look to have one of the best and deepest ILB units in football.
With a $2 million roster bonus due in March 2025, there’s a good chance Holcomb will be released this upcoming offseason unless he can get healthy and find a way to crack the Steelers’ rotation. For now, he’ll continue focusing on his rehab and getting fully healthy.
