The Pittsburgh Steelers had a sizable adjustment to their 2024 salary cap last week, and after some deep research, I have finally tracked down the reason for it.
Last week, the Steelers lost $1.23 million in 2024 salary cap space. That charge is related to former Steelers S Keanu Neal, who filed for an injury protection benefit from the team after being released with a failed physical designation before the 2024 season.
The Steelers released Neal in early March after he failed a physical with the team. At the time, Neal was under contract with the Steelers for the 2024 season. He was scheduled to earn $2.25 million in 2024 ahead of him being released.
During the 2023 season, Neal played in nine games for the Steelers, eight of them starts. He sustained a rib injury in the team’s win over the Green Bay Packers in Week 10 when he was hit at the end of a 32-yard interception return in the fourth quarter. The Steelers then placed Neal on the team’s Reserve/Injured list on Nov. 18.
Neal originally signed a two-year, $4.25 million contract with the Steelers in March of 2023. He had 50 tackles, a fumble recovery, and an interception during the games he played in last season.
Article 45 of the NFL CBA is all about financial protection for the players in case they sustain an injury. The primary focus of this article in the CBA is the Injury Protection Benefit, which was dramatically increased in the post-lockout 2011 CBA. The intention of the benefit is to ensure that players who sustain major injuries retain some income if they are subsequently released from a team while injured and subsequently cannot get a new contract the following season with another team.
Included below are the pages in the CBA dedicated to Article 45 if you would like to read up on the specifics related to the Injury Protection Benefit.
article-45-injury-protection-nfl-cba
