As things continue to move and shake across the NFL landscape ahead of the start of the legal tampering period at noon/ET Monday, the market for former Pittsburgh Steelers offensive tackle Dan Moore Jr. is heating to a boil.
“One source said ‘$20M a year’ is a possibility for #Steelers free agent OT Dan Moore Jr.,” FOX Sports NFL insider Jordan Schultz tweeted regarding Moore.
Previous reports had Moore, who started 66 games for the Steelers, receiving at least $15 million per year on the open market as arguably the best tackle available, especially after Ronnie Stanley and Alaric Jackson re-signed with the Baltimore Ravens and Los Angeles Rams, respectively.
Moore is coming off a disappointing contract year for the Steelers in 2024. Things started out very well for the former fourth-round pick out of Texas A&M as he played good football in the first half of the season. But after the Steelers’ Week 9 bye week, Moore’s play fell off a cliff.
From Week 10 on, Moore allowed 10 of his 12 sacks in the regular season and 27 of his 41 pressures. Four times in the second half of the season Moore was charged with allowing two or more sacks in a game, according to Pro Football Focus, doing so against the Baltimore Ravens in Week 11 and the Cleveland Browns in Week 12 and then against the Kansas City Chiefs and the Cincinnati Bengals in Weeks 17 and 18.
Moore played 1,111 snaps in the regular season and had the worst season of his career in a contract year, allowing a career-worst 12 sacks. Based on how he performed in the first half of the season, there was a chance that Moore might have played his way into another contract with the Steelers, but that ship sailed as his play cratered in the second half under offensive line coach Pat Meyer.
But with that type of experience and durability, along with being just 26 years old, Moore could find himself in demand at the tackle position.
That would bode well for not only Moore, but the Steelers, too. Losing a left tackle with that much experience hurts, but if Moore gets the type of payday many are projecting, that could help the Steelers get a rather nice compensatory pick, assuming their own aggressiveness in free agency doesn’t cancel it out.
