Cam Heyward recently signed a huge contract extension with the Steelers.
The heat keeps coming for 2023 Walter Payton Man of the Year Cam Heyward, who recently signed a 3-year, $45 million contract extension with the Pittsburgh Steelers. This week, Pittsburgh’s own Cam Heyward will be featured on the hit YouTube show Hot Ones, where big-name celebrities answer interview-style questions while eating hot wings that get progressively spicier.
While NFL players have starred on the show in the past, it has also featured massive household names like Jennifer Lawrence, Idris Elba, Tom Holland, Robert Downey Jr., DJ Khaled, Megan Thee Stallion, Kevin Hart, and many more. Cam Heyward adds to this list and will likely be excited to answer questions about the upcoming 2024 season, his newly signed contract, his Super Bowl aspirations, and more on Thursday.
Whether it’s stuffing the run, sacking quarterbacks, or eating hot wings, one thing is certain: just like on the football field, Cam Heyward thrives when the heat is on.
It turns out the Broncos are the reason the 49ers didn’t trade Brandon Aiyuk to Pittsburgh.
The Denver Broncos might be the reason wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk is still with the San Francisco 49ers.
A trade was in place between the 49ers and Steelers to send Aiyuk to Pittsburgh. That trade ultimately never materialized, and the Athletic’s Dianna Russini reported the Broncos are the reason why.
Russini on Thursday reported the 49ers were going to acquire a third-round pick from the Steelers, and then flip a third-round selection to the Denver Broncos in exchange for wide receiver Courtland Sutton. Denver didn’t take the deal.
San Francisco was on the hunt for an asset to help them in the 2024 season. A quick look at the Steelers roster showed there weren’t many realistic options in that realm, especially if the 49ers wanted a wide receiver.
The 49ers instead tried to get creative since Pittsburgh was one of the only teams Aiyuk would’ve agreed to sign with long-term. That was a prerequisite for any trade.
Alas, Denver wouldn’t move off Sutton for a late Day 2 pick. That effectively squashed any hope of a trade between the 49ers and Steelers, opening the door for the 49ers to up their offer and ink Aiyuk to a four-year extension that will keep him under contract through the 2028 season.
Wilson is now obviously set to start in Week 1 against the Atlanta Falcons, but the more notable development is that Pittsburgh’s schedule includes a trip to Denver in Week 2.
Wilson is now set to start against his former team when the Broncos host the Steelers on Sunday, Sept. 15. That game will be regionally televised on CBS. Empower Field at Mile High has already trolled Wilson in preseason, so we can expect a “warm” welcome when the QB returns to Denver.
The Broncos acquired Wilson in a blockbuster trade with the Seattle Seahawks in 2022. He went 11-19 as a starter in Denver before being benched by coach Sean Payton with two games remaining in the 2023 season. Payton then released Wilson this spring, a move that created the largest dead money salary cap hit in NFL history.
“We felt it was in the best interests of our team,” Payton said in March. After that, Denver acquired Zach Wilson in a trade with the New York Jets and used a first-round pick to select Bo Nix during the NFL draft in April.
It’s now shaping up to be Nix vs. Wilson in Week 2.
“What I’ve been told is that Brandon Aiyuk would prefer to stay with the 49ers,” Garafolo said on NFL Network. “And has always preferred to stay with the 49ers all things being equal. Now, they haven’t been equal, but they did make that offer — in fact both sides sent proposals within the last couple of days, a week or so. And the 49ers number has gotten better than what it was previously.
“From my understanding they have agreed on a lot of the main points of the deal. Their numbers are in line. But it sounds like there’s just one more thing that needs to be ironed out. And if that thing gets ironed out, Brandon Aiyuk signs the deal. He stays with the 49ers.”
This is probably about as hopeful as it gets for 49ers fans hoping they retain the All-Pro wide receiver.
Aiyuk ultimately has to decide whether he wants to play for the 49ers or Steelers. That he would prefer to stay in San Francisco puts the team in a good spot to continuing massaging the contract terms to keep him in the Bay Area.
Had Aiyuk wanted to leave, he likely would have indicated as much to the 49ers and refused to negotiate, forcing them to execute a trade with Pittsburgh.
The 49ers return to practice Wednesday, which would be a good opportunity for Aiyuk to return with a new contract in hand. While head coach Kyle Shanahan isn’t worried about Aiyuk’s readiness, the sooner he gets on the field the better. And it sounds like he’s closer than ever to returning in a 49ers uniform.
The 49ers and Steelers have a deal in place for WR Brandon Aiyuk.
The Brandon Aiyuk saga may be winding down.
NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport provided an update Tuesday morning that appears to indicate the decision on whether Aiyuk’s tenure with the San Francisco 49ers continues is in the wide receiver’s hands.
According to Rapoport, the 49ers and Steelers have a deal in place that would send Aiyuk to Pittsburgh. The Steelers are also prepared to offer Aiyuk a contract he’d be willing to sign.
Meanwhile, San Francisco has a contract offer on the table for Aiyuk that is presumably different from the one that led to his trade request in the first place.
It’s now up to Aiyuk whether he’ll sign the deal with the 49ers, or force a trade to Pittsburgh.
There’s no clarity on what the trade would net San Francisco. Reporting from NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco indicated the Steelers wouldn’t do a deal that included second and third-round picks in next year’s draft.
That means the Steelers either moved on what they’d be willing to offer in a trade, or the 49ers brought down their asking price. If it’s the latter, this will go down as an unmitigated disaster for San Francisco’s front office.
The 49ers had opportunities to negotiate with Aiyuk as the WR market started moving, and instead they chose to leave an offer on the table he wouldn’t sign. Now they’re on the brink of trading an All-Pro for what’s likely to be below market value because they were limited in the number of teams they could trade with because of Aiyuk’s contract situation.
Of course, he could wind up choosing to stay in San Francisco and all of this drama will be water under the bridge once he returns to practice. However, there will continue to be questions in the future about how the 49ers do business because they simply can’t put themselves in a spot where they deal with this again next time a long-term contract comes up.
The Steelers turned down WHAT offer from the 49ers?!
There seem to now be two places All-Pro wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk will play in 2024.
Aiyuk will either stay with the San Francisco 49ers, or he’ll wind up getting dealt to the Pittsburgh Steelers. With the clock ticking rapidly on the preseason, it’s hard to imagine another team getting heavily enough involved to be considered a contender to acquire the 26-year-old receiver.
Trade talks between the 49ers and Steelers originally stalled before recently picking back up. Now reports indicate the talks have stalled again.
It’s not a huge surprise that trade talks aren’t going smoothly between San Francisco and Pittsburgh. Neither side is particularly eager to get swindled in the deal, and the 49ers’ need to acquire an impact player would predictably hold up a trade given what impact players the Steelers have.
The 49ers want to make sure they’re getting more-than-market value for Aiyuk, while the Steelers want to acquire him at the lowest possible price.
However, reporting from NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco paints a much different picture of the negotiations. Maiocco reported it isn’t a player holding up the deal, it’s that the Steelers aren’t willing to give the 49ers second and third-round draft picks.
That would be a wild turn of events if Pittsburgh balked because San Francisco wanted a couple of Day 2 draft picks. In August that sounds like a steal for a player of Aiyuk’s caliber on a team that desperately needs WR help.
From the 49ers’ perspective, that deal had to have been Step 1 toward something larger. Where they would’ve flipped those two picks (and perhaps other stuff) to another team for a star WR. They’re trying to win a Super Bowl. Two 2025 draft picks don’t help them do that.
At this point it’s hard to imagine a trade materializing if the Steelers aren’t willing to do a trade centered around two picks in next year’s draft. If they’re not going to do that or give up a good player, there’s no real reason for the 49ers to continue those talks.
Former Chargers defensive tackle Breiden Fehoko and the Steelers agreed to terms on Thursday, according to his agent David Canter.
Fehoko signed with Los Angeles as an undrafted free in 2020. He appeared in 19 games, four of which were starts. In 2022, he logged a career-high in snaps (279) after season-ending injuries to Austin Johnson and Otito Ogbonnia. Fehoko posted 23 tackles and a tackle for loss.
Fehoko was one of the Chargers’ most consistent interior defenders against the run. Now that he’s with Pittsburgh and Johnson and Ogbonnia are still working their way back from their respective injuries, Los Angeles could look to the draft to bring in someone for depth.
NFL LB James Harrison talked 2010 hit on Cleveland Browns Mohamed Massaquoi, a UGA football great. Not a good look for Pittsburgh Steelers.
Former Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker James Harrison was one of the hardest hitting players in the game during his 15 year NFL career.
He delivered a number of cringe-worthy hits, but maybe none worse than his 2010 helmet-to-helmet one on former Georgia wide receiver Mohamed Massaquoi, who was playing for the Cleveland Browns at the time.
You can watch a replay of it here.
That hit resulted in a $75,000 fine from the NFL.
On May 6, Harrison told Barstool’s “Going Deep” podcast that Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin handed him an envelope following the hit.
“Listen, everything I love, on my daddy’s grave, I hit that man with about, max, 50 percent of what I had, and I just hit because I wanted him to let loose of the ball. If I had known they were going to fine me $75,000, I would have tried to kill him. Dude, I’m telling you, 75?
“I ain’t going to lie to you. When that happened, right? The G-est thing Mike Tomlin ever did, he handed me an envelope after that. I ain’t going to say what, but he handed me an envelope after that.”
The comment led to plenty of speculation from NFL fans that Tomlin had a system similar to the Saints’ “Bountygate” in place.
The hit actually did not get flagged in that game and the $75k fine was eventually reduced to $50k. As for Massaquoi, he suffered a concussion on that play.
On Friday, Harrison posted on Instagram to clarify that Tomlin never paid him for that hit.
“Wow y’all really comparing what I said to BOUNTYGATE?!?,” Harrison wrote. “Mike T. Has NEVER paid me for hurting someone or TRYING to hurt someone or put a bounty on ANYBODY! If you knew the full story of what happened back then you’d know that BS fine for a Legal Play wasn’t even penalized during the game.”
In response to the story, Steelers president Art Rooney II disputed Harrison’s initial claim.
Reached out to #Steelers regarding James Harrison saying on a podcast coach Mike Tomlin “handed me an envelope” after NFL fined Harrison $75,000 in 2010 for big hit on former #Browns WR Mohamed Massaquoi. This is the response: pic.twitter.com/WioCansaFX
Massaquoi is one of the greatest receivers in Georgia history. From Charlotte, North Carolina, he came to UGA in 2005. By the time he left in 2008, he had 158 catches for 2,282 yards and 16 touchdowns, which ranks seventh best in school history.
Picked in the second round of the 2009 NFL Draft, Massaquoi played four seasons with Browns. He left Cleveland after the 2012 season, and in August of 2013, he was released by two teams – the Jaguars and the Jets.
He finished his NFL career with 118 receptions for 1,745 yards and seven touchdowns.
Now that Tom Brady is the new sheriff in Tampa Bay, where will former Bucs QB Jameis Winston end up?
While Tom Brady prepares to take over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, his predecessor Jameis Winston is still searching for a new team to call his own. The former number one overall pick, who threw for 5,109 yards to go along with 33 touchdowns and 30 interceptions in 2019, was unfortunately shown the door once Brady chose the Bucs as his next destination.
Even though Winston has kept a positive attitude and looks to be in prime shape, he still hasn’t found any team willing to pony up the money he may be looking for on the open market. Ultimately, Winston may have to settle for a backup role, at least in the short term. Several media members, including NBC Sports’ Peter King, feel the Pittsburgh Steelers could offer Winston the perfect opportunity to sit for a year behind a seasoned starter in Ben Roethlisberger, while also being coached by one of the NFL’s best in Mike Tomlin.
Around the NFL‘s Nick Shook is now boarding the Winston-to-Pittsburgh bandwagon, believing the former Heisman Trophy winner could benefit from being in that environment. The one major roadblock? Pittsburgh’s cap room.
Per Shook:
“With the Steelers needing a long-term answer beyond Ben Roethlisberger, this feels like a sneaky-good situation for both sides. The problem: Pittsburgh has just $10 million in cap space right now, per Over The Cap, so some financial gymnastics might be necessary. But if Mike Tomlin can get Winston to cut down on his risks and turnovers and learn something from Big Ben — not the most eager mentor, but whatever — this has legitimate upside.”
Winston may just have to accept that no team seems willing to invest in him as their starter, at least not in 2020. Keep in mind, though, Winston only turned 26 in January, so he still has plenty of good years left in him. If he can find the right team and head coach, doing a redshirt season might be the best route to take to regain a starting job, as well as a bigger contract, down the line.
See why Marc Sessler over at NFL.com thinks Jameis Winston could be a risky acquisition for any team.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers haven’t been to the postseason since 2007, but given all the chatter surrounding the club as we approach free agency, you’d think they were already Super Bowl favorites heading into 2020.
That’ll happen when a guy like Tom Brady is linked to your team. While Tampa Bay can still opt to bring Jameis Winston back, those 30 interceptions make it hard to justify paying the former number one overall pick, even if it is just on a one-year deal.
Winston could very well be done in Tampa Bay, and according to Marc Sessler over at NFL.com, Winston is the riskiest free agent of 2020. Even if the Bucs don’t bring him back, Sessler thinks it will be hard for the former Heisman Trophy winner to find work as a starter in 2020.
Per Sessler:
“With a record-setting seven pick-sixes in 2019, Winston appears to be done in Tampa — with the Bucs reportedly hot to trot for Brady — and realistically out of rope as a starting NFL quarterback. No franchise can sell Winston as a QB1 due to his perilous ball security. The risk is reduced in a backup role, but that scenario screams for some under-fire coach turning to Jameis in, say, Week 7 — and suffering the consequences.”
If Winston is destined to be a backup in 2020, there are several experts, including Peter King of NBC Sports, who feel he could benefit from sitting for a year behind a guy like Ben Roethlisberger in Pittsburgh. Winston would get a chance to learn from Big Ben — another Bruce Arians protege — and inherit the starting job once Ben calls it a career. Plus, he’d be coached by Mike Tomlin, one of the most respected, no-nonsense coaches in the league.
It might not be the ideal situation for Winston in the short term, but long term, it could pay big dividends.
