Tag: 2020 Steelers offseason

NFL extends virtual offseason through June

The Steelers will not have in-person workouts this month.

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There had been hope that the NFL would allow players to return to facilities at the end of join and teams could stop their virtual offseason programs. However, according to NFL reporter Tom Pelissero, the virtual program will extend through June 26, meaning no live minicamps until July.

This isn’t to say teams cannot end their virtual offseasons before the June 26 date. They simply cannot transition to workouts at their facilities until they get the green light from the league.

Most players, including those on the Pittsburgh Steelers have been using this time to train and stay in shape. And as individual states have loosened their stay-at-home restrictions, we’ve seen more and more players getting together on their own to work out.

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Coaches and rehabbing players may return to Steelers facilities Friday

Some Steelers will finally get back to work on Friday.

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On Thursday, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell sent a memo to all teams about the timeline of return to regular duties. According to the memo, the Pittsburgh Steelers will be allowed to have coaches and employees back in the facility starting on Friday, June 5.

This new mandate means head coach Mike Tomlin and his staff can finally meet in person and begin preparations for training camp and the upcoming season.

Aside from coaches and employees, players may also return to team facilities if they are rehabbing an injury. The league has already said teams must do their training camps at home and there will be no joint practices.

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Steelers missed opportunities to upgrade QB and DT in offseason

Did the Steelers do enough to prepare for the upcoming season?

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The Pittsburgh Steelers faced something of an abridged offseason due to a lack of salary cap space and NFL draft capital. Pittsburgh didn’t have huge offseason needs which helped mitigate some of the shortcomings but nevertheless, there was more that could have been done.

At least according to ESPN columnist Bill Barnwell. He ranked all the teams according to their offseason chances and the Steelers checked in at No. 20. According to Barnwell, the biggest loss was defensive tackle Javon Hargrave and the replacement by Chris Wormley wasn’t close to equal.

Barnwell also thinks the Steelers missed the boat by not upgrading their backup quarterback situation. In fact, this is the focus of what Barnwell thinks the Steelers still need to do.

Upgrade behind Roethlisberger. The Steelers should absolutely be in the market for Cam Newton or Joe Flacco. If Roethlisberger returns from his elbow injury and stays healthy all season, great. If not, they can’t afford to let another dominant season from their defense go to waste because their offense is averaging one point per possession, as it did during the second half of 2019.

Barnwell is absolutely right. I know the front office has continued to assure everyone they are comfortable with Mason Rudolph as the team’s backup quarterback but after last season there’s no way they believe that. This team is too good to let a correctable error at quarterback be the reason the team misses the playoffs for a third straight season.

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Steelers HC Mike Tomlin talks about changes to the NFL offseason

Mike Tomlin offers the most Tomlin answer ever about the offseason.

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As of now, despite all the changes to the NFL offseason, everyone is still operating on a level playing field. Everything has changed and every team is seeing their schedule being abridged and compressed.

Pittsburgh Steelers head coach talked about how the changes have impacted them and what his philosophy is going through this and how it really hasn’t changed.

“The entire National Football League will be going through it and I just think if we perform relatively better than others we put ourselves in position to be that team at the end of the journey,” Tomlin said. “That is always our mentality regarding the start of a season.”

Not exactly a rousing speech for the fans but we expect nothing less from Tomlin. He’s all business and you know beneath the surface he hates the fact so much has changed about the offseason.

However, Tomlin touched on one very important point without even trying. Tomlin believes in the idea of just being a little better than another team as opposed to doing everything to be great. Right now, the Steelers have to figure out a way to be better than the Baltimore Ravens and Kansas City Chiefs, who are the class of the AFC. It might take a philosophy more than just a little better this season to be a serious contender.

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Steelers announce 1-year contracts for 3 former XFL players

Pittsburgh announced three official signings.

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The Pittsburgh Steelers got back to business on Monday. The team announced official signings for three former XFL players. According to the team, safety Tyree Kinnel, edge rusher Dewayne Hendrix and linebacker Christian Kuntz have all been signed to one-year contracts. The XFL was forced to cancel its season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Being totally honest, all three of these guys are longshots to make the final 53-man roster. Hendrix has flashed some potential and the fact he played his college football at Pitt will make him a fan favorite.

The guy who might have the best shot is Kuntz. Not because he’s a great linebacker but his ability to work as a long snapper.

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Poll: What position should the Steelers select at No. 49?

Cast your vote to tell Steelers Wire what you would do with the first pick.

The Steelers have been unusually busy in free agency and addressed a lot of needs, but they still have some holes to fill.

We’re one month from the start of the NFL Draft (April 23-25). What do you think the Steelers should do?

Cast your vote and let us know.

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Report: Steelers to restructure contract of C Maurkice Pouncey

The Steelers have now restructured six contracts this offseason.

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The theme of the offseason for the Pittsburgh Steelers has been any restructure is a good restructure. Pittsburgh has reworked a handful of contracts already this offseason with the latest being center Maurkice Pouncey according to ESPN reporter Brooke Pryor.

There are no details of the restructure but if Pittsburgh went for the max it would free up around $3.5 million in salary-cap space. Pittsburgh has been slashing prices to the bone since slapping the franchise tag on linebacker Bud Dupree.

Pouncey has been the leader of the Steelers offensive line for the past nine seasons but had one of his worst seasons in 2019. This restructure makes it No. 6 in just three days for the cash-strapped Steelers.

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3 takeaways from the loss of B.J. Finney and Ramon Foster

Pittsburgh must scramble to replace two key offensive linemen.

In a span of 24 hours, the Pittsburgh Steelers lost their starting left guard and the guy who would have replaced him in the starting lineup. Ramon Foster’s retirement was unexpected but B.J. Finney singing with the Seattle Seahawks was not.

What do these two big moves mean for an offense trying to get back on track this season? Here are our three big takeaways.

Matt Feiler might be switching positions

The easiest fix on the roster to fill the void at left guard is Matt Feiler. He’s been the team’s starting right tackle for the last season and 10 games but is a natural guard. Just looking at veteran depth on the team, there is much more at tackle than guard so the Steelers might find it easier to slide Feiler inside and let Zach Banner and Chuks Okorafor duke it out for the starting right tackle spot.

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Steelers release LB Mark Barron

The cuts keep coming fast for the Steelers as they clear salary cap space.

One of the players most likely to get released this offseason was linebacker Mark Barron. His play compared to his salary was completely out of whack. The Steelers placed the franchise tag on Bud Dupree on Monday, meaning the team had to clear salary cap in a hurry. This means Barron’s time with the Steelers is over.

Releasing Barron frees up $5.2 million in cap space. This paired with the $5 million saved by releasing Anthony Chickillo and the Steelers are a little over $5 million away from having the room to cover the $15.8 million due to Dupree this season.

Barron was supposed to get his career back on track in Pittsburgh. But unfortunately, he never played up to his salary and with Vince Williams on the roster, the Steelers no longer had a need to overpay Barron.

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Poll: Should the NFL delay the start of the league year?

The coronavirus could push back the start of the NFL offseason.

The NFL league year is set to start on March 18. But thanks to the global pandemic that is the coronavirus, make professional and collegiate sports leagues and teams have shuttered themselves as a way to protect the public from the spread.

But does the NFL need to take things that far? They have already pulled back on scouting and coaching staff traveling to pro days as well as having prospects at team facilities for pre-draft visits. There are even grumblings about canceling the public performance aspect of the 2020 NFL draft.

Our question for today pertains to the start of the league year, which is essentially free agency. Should the NFL follow suit with the rest of professional sports and stop all business?

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The biggest impact would be with the acquisition of free agents. Notification and negotiation isn’t an issue if the team is following proper social distancing. It’s the physical. All players signed as free agents must pass a physical and if I’m an NFL team, I want that done by my people, not someone else’s.

Cast your vote and let us know what you think the NFL should do.

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