Early look at 2022 Salary Cap...

[Scunge]

I see it reported that we are 11th in cap space with $34 million, which doesn't seem like a lot.

Even though Ben just announced his retirement, I will be curious if in the bookkeeping of it the Steelers are able to officially announce it as a post June 1st thing, if that is possible and they are able to spread out his cap hit over two years? Freeing up money this year instead of taking that full $10 million hit? Let us set that aside for the moment.

I think a new contract for Minhak, and a new contract for Boz will lower their collective $15+ million cap hits, freeing up say $5 million?

So, that gets us to $39 million in cap space.

I think Tuitt is either cut or traded or retires with the result being $4.3 million of savings.

The cap goes up to $43.3 million.

Joe Schobert. He can't come back for 2022 at $9 million, he has a $8.75 million base salary and then roster and workout bonuses on top of that. If he is cut that frees up $7.9 million. Hey, they made the trade and it didn't work out and we didn't give up much in the effort, but time to rebuild. Cut him.

The cap goes up to $51.2 million.

Zach Banner will count $6.625 million against the cap for '22. If you can't get playing time, start with the shitshow we had on the offensive line, if you can't beat out a rookie tackle in Moore and a journeyman in Chuks, if you can't get a helmet over Haeg, then sorry Banner, the Steelers should not be paying you to be the most expensive 4th string tackle in the NFL. If he is cut that saves $5 million.

The cap goes up to $56.2 million

There are only two players available for substantial restructures and I think they will only do one of them, notably TJ Watt, I think they leave Cam alone this year. Watt's highest base salary by year in his new contract is for 2022, $24 million, it was built that way on purpose and that second year is always the prime year for a restructure. Anyway, the Steelers do a restructure of Watt and free up $17.3 million.

The cap goes up to $73.5 million.

I think this is all very realistic and nothing done here is overreaching. We gave new contracts to Fitz and Boz, cut Schobert, Banner and Tuitt (Cut/Trade/Retire), and restructured TJ Watt. Those 6 moves got us from $34 million in cap space to over $73 million in cap space.

Who knows what else may happen? Maybe they are able to divide up that $10 million+ final cap hit for Ben, and spread it out over 2022-2023. Maybe Alualu doesn't come back from injury as well as he hoped and just retires? Or the Steelers cut him? That could free up $2.5 million. Those two added to the six moves previously and the Steelers would be looking at $80 million in cap space.

This year, finally, the Steelers should be able to be big spenders in free agency.

[LakecrestSteeler]

Even though Ben just announced his retirement, I will be curious if in the bookkeeping of it the Steelers are able to officially announce it as a post June 1st thing, if that is possible and they are able to spread out his cap hit over two years? Freeing up money this year instead of taking that full $10 million hit? Let us set that aside for the moment.

Sounds like they will need to extend him immediately after the SB and then cut him after June 1st. Can’t imagine they don’t do whatever is necessary to limit Ben’s dead money…assuming one can do that while progressing the retirement paperwork.

I see this team shaping up to repeat the same mistakes in the 2022 season. You have already highlighted a couple with the d-line situation.

Repeat mistakes that seem to be destiny:

1.) IMLB - Keeping Bush. There is no reason whatsoever to not expect the same type of performance.
2.) Defensive line is shaping up to be a mess again next year with Tuitt and Alualu decisions looming. Not even sure if it can be fixed. We will need some luck on this one to thwart the destiny of repeating misery.
3.) Canada as OC. I expect a repeat performance. Some personnel will help, but expect him to be fired mid-season or immediately afterwards due to a near cellar dwelling offensive results.
4.) QB situation. Everyone with eyes knows Rudolph is not the answer. Predict we will go into 2022 with a QB corp equivalent to the 2021 Oline corp. We will go on the long trip with 4 bald tires and be surprised when we get flats and hydroplane in inclement weather.
5.) Center. Don’t see them fixing it. How can they fix it, when it wasn’t nearly as glaring as Bush, but the plan is to keep Bush.
6.) I expect that they will plan to operate with DJ as WR1. They will be complacent and content with DJ, and he will have another inconsistent streak with drops and flake play.

Those are my biggest concerns. Don’t see them getting addressed or resolved through draft, FA signings, luck or performance improvements.

Even though it looks like we have the cash to do it. We need to add at least 2 starters to the line on offense. 1 starter to the d-line, 1 starter to IMLB, and another starter in the secondary. And a QB.

Need 6 new starters from the draft and FA signings! And that is being conservative.

[Who Dee Knee]

Scunge thanks for this analysis. $75 million will get you some productive free agents. Perhaps Ryan Jensen? Leighton Vander Esch? Plenty of WRs to pick from if JuJu leaves. What about Jameis Winston, Marcus Mariota or Mitch Trubisky?

I think we can get 3-4 guys in free agency who will really help. Then there’s the draft.

[jebrick]

I will be surprised if they cut Banner ( unless he can't play any more). That would leave them with one OT under contract.

[Mick]

Conventionally we restructure because we need the room; if we have enough room, it may make sense to take some of those cap hits in 2022 so we still have room to maneuver in 23. Unless we really think 2022 is our championship window.

[Jizz Mop]

I will be surprised if they cut Banner ( unless he can't play any more). That would leave them with one OT under contract.

How many snaps has Banner played the last two years?

Where is this amazing tackle?

Worthless. To the dumpster w his ass. Easily replaceable.

[Jizz Mop]

Conventionally we restructure because we need the room; if we have enough room, it may make sense to take some of those cap hits in 2022 so we still have room to maneuver in 23. Unless we really think 2022 is our championship window.

I hope they’re not thinking 2022 is within a championship window.

This team needs a few lean years. We need to rebuild both lines.

Roll w Mason.

Let our elite HC work his magic.

[Mick]

Conventionally we restructure because we need the room; if we have enough room, it may make sense to take some of those cap hits in 2022 so we still have room to maneuver in 23. Unless we really think 2022 is our championship window.

I hope they’re not thinking 2022 is within a championship window.

This team needs a few lean years. We need to rebuild both lines.

Roll w Mason.

Let our elite HC work his magic.

i’m against tanking in general, but i see 0 justification for any ‘mortgaging the future’ moves to prop up the 2022 roster. To include but not limited to: trading draft picks for rent-a-players, restructuring to save cap space in ‘22 at the expense of cap space later, etc.

If there’s a good FA opportunity in this offseason we can get a multi-year deal with, Joe Hadenish, get him, but don’t backload the contract.

Extend Diontae and Minkah, and don’t backload those. Draft BPA. But I don’t want to watch Rudolph and his patented bounce passes anymore. There’s probably 30 better backup QBs in the 5-10M range that could at least give us a watchable product this fall.

[SteelerDayTrader]

Colbert 2022 with a lot of FA money = disaster

Like kiss the next 5 yrs goodbye disaster

[Jizz Mop]

Colbert 2022 with a lot of FA money = disaster

Like kiss the next 5 yrs goodbye disaster

He probably has a sinister plan on his supposed way out the door to undermine the franchise and make sure it’s poised for 5 consecutive, 4-win max seasons.


Good call

[Scunge]

1.) IMLB - Keeping Bush. There is no reason whatsoever to not expect the same type of performance.

Bush is not going anywhere barring any sort of trade.

Be very careful of what you wish for they say. For years I have heard people bemoan the fact that the Steelers won't pay for big contracts or give away a lot of guaranteed money.

Well, Bush, as a rookie when he signed his contract, had that all FULLY GUARANTEED! Thats right, Bush had all of that almost $19 million guaranteed.

He has a cap hit of $6 million this year and if the team just cut him, he still gets paid that $6 million.

I watch him out there loafing, not running to the football, stop and starting, he sees a team mate make contact with the runner and he slows down, then if the RB breaks the tackle, Bush then goes oh shit and speeds up again. It is pathetic, it is a terminable offense in my mind. He has the mindset of a player who has checked out and has no sense of urgency. He is getting every cent of that contract regardless of whether they start him or not, whether they cut him or not. Wonderful!

In terms of people not wanting to restructure Watt? No, that is needed. That restructure alone could mean the difference in signing 3 mid tier free agents. That could mean the difference in bringing in a new NT, slot CB, and an OL as starters. And when you restructure contracts you want to do it early on so that you have more years to spread the money out.

The time to rebuild is now and while some may say why bother the QB is not there yet, precisely! You have to build the team up first before you get the QB. If we go out and get a stud Guard or Center and he signs a 5 year contract, they are still going to be under contract two years from now once we get our next QB. You can't just wait.

My wishlist for what I want the Steelers to do in terms of free agency.

Sign your own, lock them up. I am tired of watching the Bud Duprees, James Conners, Javon Hargraves, Mike Hiltons, Matt Feilers all leave.

Minkah is playing under that 5th year option of $10.6 million and a new contract will lessen that cap hit for 2022 by $3 million or so.

Boz is playing in the last year of his contract with a cap hit of $4.95 million. Again, a new contract lowers that 2022 cap hit and Boz will turn 31 and still in his prime, FG kickers can play well even late into their 30s.

DJ is in the last year of his contract. Lock him up now, don't let him get to free agency. Those that hate on him need to grow up, he is clearly our best WR and has suffered by not having a QB able to use him fully.

Montravius Adams. I really loved the quickness and hustle he provided at NT, reminded me of Hargave in that regard. He appears much taller and longer than what he is listed as and I think he can play as a 5 technique DE.

You gave up a 5th round pick to get him, he had 3 INT and many pass breakups, why not keep him and give him a chance to be a starter? I am talking of course about Witherspoon. Like Adams he was a former 3rd round pick, and he has size, speed and talent.

Outside free agents? I go for an interior offensive lineman, Guard or Center, I pursue a RT, I pursue a #2 RB, a new slot WR. We can do better than Leglue, Turner, Banner, Benny Snell and JuJu and Ray Ray

On defense, I look for a NT, an ILB, a slot CB, a safety. Again, we should be able to upgrade from the Buggs, Schobert, Maulet and Edmunds/Killebrews.

I actually enjoy the roster building, these next couple years are going to be exciting as the pieces fall into place. When you don't have a bunch of whales chewing up most of your salary cap, building a new team can go quite quickly.

[Mick]

1.) IMLB - Keeping Bush. There is no reason whatsoever to not expect the same type of performance.

Bush is not going anywhere barring any sort of trade.

Be very careful of what you wish for they say. For years I have heard people bemoan the fact that the Steelers won't pay for big contracts or give away a lot of guaranteed money.

Well, Bush, as a rookie when he signed his contract, had that all FULLY GUARANTEED! Thats right, Bush had all of that almost $19 million guaranteed.

He has a cap hit of $6 million this year and if the team just cut him, he still gets paid that $6 million.

I watch him out there loafing, not running to the football, stop and starting, he sees a team mate make contact with the runner and he slows down, then if the RB breaks the tackle, Bush then goes oh shit and speeds up again. It is pathetic, it is a terminable offense in my mind. He has the mindset of a player who has checked out and has no sense of urgency. He is getting every cent of that contract regardless of whether they start him or not, whether they cut him or not. Wonderful!

In terms of people not wanting to restructure Watt? No, that is needed. That restructure alone could mean the difference in signing 3 mid tier free agents. That could mean the difference in bringing in a new NT, slot CB, and an OL as starters. And when you restructure contracts you want to do it early on so that you have more years to spread the money out.

The time to rebuild is now and while some may say why bother the QB is not there yet, precisely! You have to build the team up first before you get the QB. If we go out and get a stud Guard or Center and he signs a 5 year contract, they are still going to be under contract two years from now once we get our next QB. You can't just wait.

My wishlist for what I want the Steelers to do in terms of free agency.

Sign your own, lock them up. I am tired of watching the Bud Duprees, James Conners, Javon Hargraves, Mike Hiltons, Matt Feilers all leave.

Minkah is playing under that 5th year option of $10.6 million and a new contract will lessen that cap hit for 2022 by $3 million or so.

Boz is playing in the last year of his contract with a cap hit of $4.95 million. Again, a new contract lowers that 2022 cap hit and Boz will turn 31 and still in his prime, FG kickers can play well even late into their 30s.

DJ is in the last year of his contract. Lock him up now, don't let him get to free agency. Those that hate on him need to grow up, he is clearly our best WR and has suffered by not having a QB able to use him fully.

Montravius Adams. I really loved the quickness and hustle he provided at NT, reminded me of Hargave in that regard. He appears much taller and longer than what he is listed as and I think he can play as a 5 technique DE.

You gave up a 5th round pick to get him, he had 3 INT and many pass breakups, why not keep him and give him a chance to be a starter? I am talking of course about Witherspoon. Like Adams he was a former 3rd round pick, and he has size, speed and talent.

Outside free agents? I go for an interior offensive lineman, Guard or Center, I pursue a RT, I pursue a #2 RB, a new slot WR. We can do better than Leglue, Turner, Banner, Benny Snell and JuJu and Ray Ray

On defense, I look for a NT, an ILB, a slot CB, a safety. Again, we should be able to upgrade from the Buggs, Schobert, Maulet and Edmunds/Killebrews.

I actually enjoy the roster building, these next couple years are going to be exciting as the pieces fall into place. When you don't have a bunch of whales chewing up most of your salary cap, building a new team can go quite quickly.

Issue with restructuring is it reduces our cap room in ‘23 on. Yes, the extra money means we could bring in some extra legit midtier FAs this offseason. At the expense of being less able to bring in FAs or resign players in future seasons.

[Scunge]

But Mick, what players exactly are we going to be able to NOT sign in 23, 24, etc?

The cupboard is bare, where are all of the young rising stars that this team is going to have to sign?

I pointed out the obvious ones in Minkah, Boz and DJ. Watt was locked up last season. Beyond that? Who??

This team needs a massive injection of talent, everywhere. The middle of the roster sucks. The bottom of the roster sucks. We have been so busy trading aways draft picks and letting picks that panned out leave in free agency, that the talent drain is the worst I have seen in decades.

We are not a franchise QB away from anything, and that next franchise QB may be another 20 year wait.

[Mick]

But Mick, what players exactly are we going to be able to NOT sign in 23, 24, etc?

The cupboard is bare, where are all of the young rising stars that this team is going to have to sign?

I pointed out the obvious ones in Minkah, Boz and DJ. Watt was locked up last season. Beyond that? Who??

This team needs a massive injection of talent, everywhere. The middle of the roster sucks. The bottom of the roster sucks. We have been so busy trading aways draft picks and letting picks that panned out leave in free agency, that the talent drain is the worst I have seen in decades.

We are not a franchise QB away from anything, and that next franchise QB may be another 20 year wait.

23: claypool, highsmith, maybe Dotson depending on performance this fall
24: freiermuth. Moore probably; too early to say on green/johnson/norwood/loudermilk.

And if none of those guys pan out, every dollar we don’t push off into the future this offseason will be available in those offseasons to go after FAs.

But i think you are missing my point; you say we’ve had a big problem watching talent walk for years, and our roster needs rebuilding, and we aren’t even within a franchise QB of being a contender right now. I agree! And then you propose to mortgage the future to put FAs on the field in ‘22, which would put us right back into the same “let our talent walk” situations in ‘25 and beyond.

[Scunge]

I don’t see how restructuring one single player for 2022 is mortgaging the future, we will have to agree to disagree. A couple years ago I remember them restructuring as many as 7 players and I am not calling for any more of those lame voidable years restructures either.

What started the rebuild back in 1992 and then in the early 00s was this team going out in free agency and signing quality players. They didn’t wait until they had Ben in 2004 before signing talent. Jeff Hartings, James Farrior, those were big free agents just as the Kevin Greens, Duval Loves were 10 years before that.

You have to strike while you can and when the stars and planets align.

[Kodiak.]

Teams that aren't paying a franchise QB really struggle to spend their cap. They end-up having to overpay their own guys, and overpaying free agents.

I don't see a need to create cap space to start overpaying a bunch of mediocre players. We burn off the dead cap money from Ben in a few others this year, but it doesn't really matter. SF is a rare exception to building a contender through FA. But that's generally a low ROI - teams don't let good, young players walk. And when they do, a bidding war ensues.

No, what PIT should do instead of continuing to defer cap hits into the future, is front load deals while the cupboard is bare. Re-build the foundation of this team through the draft, and THEN use all that dry powder you've been accumulating to make bold moves to add those last couple of players you need to become a contender.