Should the Steelers try to re-sign Steven Nelson?

Agreed but I think the cap plays a lot here too.

A normal year I don't think this happens

 

I'm not understanding the Nelson hate here. It's not like he was trying to renegotiate his deal. The Steelers flat out released him because the cap shrunk by 20mil. I'd take him back easily.

 

I know it’s your thing to want the washed up players, but come on he’s not that good anymore.

 

Lets sign Mr. Peabody and Sherman...

 

If Sherman is still good, how come no team is interested in signing him? The Steelers aren't going to sign a 33 year old CB.

 

Eh... maybe, maybe not. With what Nelson has said publicly, his agent might have made more forceful demands to get a better deal.

Nelson: "What really happened was, I felt, and also my agent felt, we were due an extension due to the fact that I've outplayed my current contract with the past two years. Given where the current corner market is."

 

I don't doubt he said that, but the whole situation was kind of blurry to me. First it was reported he was released because he said some stuff on twitter but when it was all said and done afterward, both Nelson and Colbert said it was due to the salary cap situation. As usual, I'm sure there's more that we don't know behind the scenes.

Either way, I have little faith he returns just because of the "visuals". Whatever happened, the exit wasn't as smooth as it could have been.

 

Yeah, the Twitter thing. If the Steelers had a habit of releasing players because of what should be social media misconduct, they wouldn't have enough players to field a punt coverage team.

It seems to me that the Steelers tried to negotiate with Nelson to defer some money for '21. Nelson and his agent freaked, so the Steelers just cut him. Isn't it curious how the market usually proves most teams get a players' actual versus personally perceived value right much more often than not? Nelson, like Smith-Schuster had a rather bloated view of his open market worth, and the market has proven the Steelers right. Especially considering the current economics when adjusted for the pandemic. None of this is to suggest I wouldn't want him back at the market adjusted price. However, I feel the acrimony of their parting makes it an impossibility unless Nelson would be willing to eat a whole humble pie, and I don't see that happening.

Interesting comparison Hack provided between Nelson and Sherman. It does underline the eye test with Nelson, and that is I always thought he was weak in run support and a less than average tackler overall. Sherman excels in both areas, which is one reason I think he should consider a switch to safety. I think he'd be an above average one. At his age, I don't think he's suited to be a cover corner any longer. Signing Sherman would be throwing a body out there. They are already doing that, but with much younger and cheaper, albeit unproven ones.

 

So can anyone tell me why they aren't starting Antwon Blake??

 

There is probably a cut off point with guys like him and Sherman where they’ll just sit out rather than risk injury playing on an undervalued contract. I have always said Nelson is a solid #2 corner. That’s worth more than $3m in today’s NFL. I think he’ll get something in or around the $5m - $6m range once camp starts and teams figure out exactly what they have with their rookies, or there is an injury etc.

 

They'd probably be better off with Robert Blake. He played the justice system. Getting away win DPI would be child's play.

 

They released him because he used the word "hostage" in relation to being on the team. That sealed his fate and made it so that he almost certainly won't be back even if he wanted to be.

 

Certainly Sherman, yes he’d probably retire rather than play for (relatively speaking) peanuts.

In both cases if all they are getting is lowball offers they will probably wait until a team loses a starter during camp or in to the season. There really is no reason for either of them to accept an offer of $3m right now. The smart thing to do is stay in shape and wait for the phone to ring, and for a starter ready outside corner like Nelson a desperate team will ring at some stage and he will get a decent offer.

 

Stats are old news

 

Sherman simply isn't a good fit. He has always been more of a zone cornerback, and he is nowhere near the player he used to be.

 

Sherman & Terrell zone on the left side, Haden man to man on the right & Minka - Bush disrupting from the middle. What to do with Vince, rb spy?

 

I did find one list that had Nelson the #1 free agent still available.. and Sherman #7.... it was based on age and surfing to ba long term deal. But all the rest I found list Sherman above Nelson

Here are 3 with there synopsis of the players
____________________
1. RICHARD SHERMAN, SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS

As PFF’s highest-graded cornerback, Richard Sherman has regained his dominance by perfecting a top-down technique that allows him to use his 6-foot-3 frame in the 49ers' single-high man-to-man or deep Cover-3 zone scheme. Sherman has always been a smart and savvy player who is a perfect fit for press coverage with a mix of both man and zone coverage. He has the NFL’s 10th-best forced incompletion rate (17.6%) and has allowed only one touchdown across 517 coverage snaps.
Above all, Sherman has the most coveted trait you want in any pass defender — he doesn’t allow big pass plays downfield. In 2019, he allowed only 8.4 yards per reception, third-best in the league, while just 13 of his 51 targets were converted to a first down, which was the fourth-best total by any player at his position.
Sherman plays with plenty of swagger, but his performance is backed up with plenty of substance, as evidenced by the fact that opposing quarterbacks have managed a passer rating of just 46.8 when throwing his way. As he wraps up his ninth NFL season, Sherman has hit the sweet spot of consistency by bringing his A-game to a top-10 defense.

7. STEVEN NELSON, PITTSBURGH STEELERS

During the 2019 offseason, Pittsburgh searched for a corner to play opposite Joe Haden and erase the disappointment of Artie Burns. And by signing the former Chiefs cornerback, the Steelers got just what they were looking for.
Steven Nelson has made an immediate impact by quickly adapting to the combination of the Steelers' man- and zone-coverage schemes. While the Steelers have three cornerbacks ranked in PFF’s top 25, Nelson has emerged as the team's highest-graded player at the position. He is tied at 20th among his peers — with teammate Joe Haden — with a forced incompletion rate of 15.2%, and he allowed only 0.86 yards per coverage snap that ranks 17th among the 135 qualifying players at the position.
In press coverage, Nelson displays short-space quickness with long-range speed on deep routes, and his patience at the line of scrimmage allows him to prevent a free release for receivers who want access on downfield routes. He’s earned the league’s seventh–best coverage grade (80.3) while allowing opposing quarterbacks to complete 51.5% of their passes (11th) for a 73.3 passer rating (tied with Marcus Peters for 18th).
Nelson has helped transform the Steelers' secondary from last year’s 18th-ranked coverage unit (75.8) into the third-highest graded group in 2019 (85.8); he proved to be just one of many moves made by the Steelers to help rebuild a new version of their fabled Steel Curtain.
__________

2. CB Richard Sherman

A calf injury limited Richard Sherman significantly in 2020, but the three-time first-team All-Pro still allowed just 6.9 yards per target in limited action. He's no longer in his prime at 33, but he was a Pro Bowler in his last full season (2019), and his talent and experience still make him a starting-caliber outside corner.
Yet he remains unemployed, ostensibly by choice.
Sherman has apparently been in talks with the Seahawks, Saints and Raiders, he's been connected to the Cowboys and it looks as though we can't rule out a return to the 49ers. But it seems he's fine with waiting for the right offer.
"I want to get to a team that's competing for a championship, so that's what I'm focused on and waiting for a right opportunity," he told Bloomberg last week. "When it comes, that's where I'll be."

5. CB Steven Nelson

Veteran cornerback Steven Nelson struggled with seven touchdowns allowed in coverage with the Steelers in 2020, but he surrendered zero scores in 2019. At the age of 28, he's just a couple of years removed from a four-interception campaign with the Chiefs.
He has extensive experience both outside and in the slot, and only 10 qualified corners have earned higher grades from Pro Football Focus since the start of the 2019 season.
A salary-cap casualty beyond the initial wave of free agency, Nelson appears to be biding his time. ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reported in May that 14 teams had expressed interest, but the reality is he might also be waiting for veteran star Richard Sherman to land somewhere first.
Whoever does land him will wind up with a durable top-four corner and possibly even a starter for several years to come
_____________

11. RICHARD SHERMAN, FREE AGENT

There is a perception that Sherman’s better days are behind him, but entering his age-33 season, there is still plenty of room for Sherman to take a step back and still be one of the better cornerbacks in the NFL. He and Darrelle Revis are the only two cornerbacks with at least 250 targets since 2010 who have allowed fewer than 50% of those passes to be completed.
Injuries held him to just over 300 snaps for San Francisco last season, but Sherman was the highest-graded cornerback in the league (90.3 overall) back in 2019. He’s one of the more impactful free agents still on the market.

13. STEVEN NELSON, FREE AGENT

Nelson was another surprise release by a team strapped for salary cap space. His addition, along with the signing of Joe Haden, helped stabilize a turbulent cornerback position in Pittsburgh over these last two seasons. Nelson ranks among the top 10 cornerbacks in the league in both completion rate allowed (53.9%) and passer rating allowed (75.1) among 68 players at the position to see at least 100 targets since 2019. There’s a reason he has received plenty of interest since his release
________________

HACK

 

The hate is because he's gone. If they kept him and dumped Haden, they'd pile on Joe and lavish praise on Nelson.

It's called The Endowment Effect.

If we sign Winovich and dump Marsh, the same guys saying Marsh is fine will call him a turd and identify Winovich as the next coming of Clay Matthews.

 

I say bury the hatchet and sign the guy. Nelson clearly over valued himself. The Steelers clearly over value Pierre and Layne. Nelson needs a team to play for. The Steelers need help at corner. Seems like a win win to me. Do a one year deal similar to how JUJU did, then both guys can test the free agent market next season with a better cap.

I am not at all sold on UDFAs contributing. I am also not sold on Pierre being the answer. Start Haden and Nelson, and have Sutton fill the Mike Hilton role. This would solidify the secondary.

 

He was really good in 2019 but nothing special last year. He's simply not as good as he thinks he is and he burned his bridges here.

 

He didn't really burn any bridges. Him tweeting a few snide comments, pales in comparison to things the Steelers have put up with from other players. There is nothing that happened that cant be squashed between he and the Steelers.

 

I disagree. Saying he is a hostage is something it will be hard for him to come back from. That's even assuming that he would swallow his pride and come crawling back, which I think is extremely unlikely.

 

Hate was a strong term if taken literally, guess i don't see it that way when I wrote it in the context of "don't understand the Nelson hate here". Meaning people here are being critical of him in a bad way.

Him being still available is not a sign of him overvaluing himself either. He could have multiple offers on the table and maybe he's waiting for the price to go up after preseason injuries or new guys are not working out as teams thought. Teams will get more nervous when the regular season gets near and that will sweeten the pot for a player. No one knows. We'll find out when he signs a deal and the numbers come out.

His twitter posts were stupid as are hundreds of posts by players. That's why most of them canceled their accounts or use fake names. We will see how stupid the Steelers are for relying on Pierre who only has 35 defensive snaps and Layne who is being surpassed by the UDFA.

And how is he overvaluing himself in the first place? Do you think his agent, looking at the Steelers cap situation, said hey Stevie lets see if we can renegotiate? Or is it more plausible that the Steelers came to him and said, hey we are up against it with the cap. Give us some time to finalize other deals and maybe we can re-work your deal. Then time passes and he mouths off on twitter.

Like I said originally, there is little to no possibility that he comes back but I'd like him back if they could work it out. He's a solid #2 corner and if Haden or Sutton go down, it will get brutal.