Scratch another defensive lineman off of the board as a potential answer for the Pittsburgh Steelers. After seeing Jonathan Allen sign with the Minnesota Vikings Tuesday morning, the Steelers are now missing out on former defensive lineman Javon Hargrave.
According to NFL Network Insider Tom Pelissero, the Vikings are closing in on adding Hargrave after he is officially released by the San Francisco 49ers Wednesday on the official start of the new league year. They designated him a post-June 1 release, so he will be free to sign anywhere at the start of the new league year on Wednesday.
Hargrave, 32, is coming off an injury-marred 2024 season with the San Francisco 49ers. He played in just three games, recording seven tackles with just one tackle for loss. Hargrave played just 104 snaps last season.
In his career, Hargrave has started 115 games with 380 total tackles, 55 tackles for loss, 45.5 sacks, 79 QB hits, four forced fumbles, and eight passes defensed. While injured most of last year, he was a Pro Bowler for the 49ers in his first season there with seven sacks and eight tackles for loss.
Hargrave was a third-round pick of the Steelers in the 2016 NFL Draft out of South Carolina State and spent four seasons in Pittsburgh. During his time in the Steel City, Hargrave recorded 168 tackles, 14.5 sacks, 22 tackles for loss, two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries, playing in 63 games with 52 starts.
Following his four seasons in Pittsburgh, Hargrave signed a big-money deal with the Philadelphia Eagles and spent three seasons there, losing in the Super Bowl in 2022. After that season, Hargrave joined the San Francisco 49ers in free agency and earned a trip to the Pro Bowl in 2023, losing in the Super Bowl again to the Kansas City Chiefs.
The Steelers find themselves with a significant need along the defensive line behind Cameron Hayward and Keeanu Benton, especially after cutting Larry Ogunjobi Monday. Hargrave made sense as an affordable piece who wouldn’t have factored into the compensatory pick formula due to his pending release by the 49ers. But now, he’s off to Minnesota and the pickings are getting quite slim along the defensive line in free agency.
