LB Nick Herbig and the Steelers have agreed on a four-year, $100 million

I tend to agree. At a minimum, with there being 2 OLB positions, even if Watt and Highsmith both play 75% of snaps, there's another 50% of OLB snaps on the table. That's before any injuries.

I could see something like 55/55/50/30/10 between Watt/Highsmith/Herbig/Sawyer/Others

Or to your point, packages that get all three on the field at the same time. Graham has been talking about building the defense around his players. Well, here's a chance to do that.

Getting the Herbig deal done gives them options more than anything else. They don't have to do anything right now. They're basically stuck with Watt, Herbig, and Sawyer given their respective contract situations. And with Highsmith's deal, they can trade him at any time between now and the 2027 trade deadline. There's no reason to rush it, especially if they're not satisfied with what the market is returning.

 

I know you didn't just use a fan account as a source .

 

I don't think he's done being good, but I do think he is done being an elite player. He is done being worth over $40 million a year.

There are outliers regardless of position, but the comparison to Boswell was ridiculous.

 

I understand using Heyward, though interior linemen like him tend to age better than edge rushers, but bringing in Boswell is just ridiculous. He was a 31-year-old kicker. There was no reason to think that was an age-related decline.