Steelers Preseason

Steelers Announce Spring Workout Schedule

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The Pittsburgh Steelers have announced the dates for their offseason training schedule.

The three phase program will begin with voluntary workouts starting on April 20th. Per the collective bargaining agreement, this phase of the program will run 2 weeks, and is limited to strength and conditioning activities, as well as rehabbing. Players can work out on the field, but no practice is permitted.

Phase 2 will begin May 4th, and will run for three weeks, concluding on May 21st. During this phase, the team can conduct on-field workouts, and begin individual drills. Team practice is allowed, but on a “separates” basis (meaning no offense vs. defense).

The weekend after the draft, May 8-10, the team will hold it’s rookie mini-camp.

The final phase of the offseason program will begin Tuesday, May 26th. This phase lasts for 4 weeks. During this time, the team is allowed 10 organized team practice activities (OTAs). Live contact isn’t allowed, but 7-on-7, 9-on-7, and 11-on-11 drills are permitted.

The exact OTA dates are:  May 26, May 27, May 28, June 2, June 3, June 4, June 8, June 9, June 10, and June 11.

The off-season program is concluded by a mandatory 3 day mini-camp, which will be held from June 16th – June 18th.

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Steelers Add LB Shayon Green To Offseason Roster

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The Steelers have signed linebacker Shayon Green to their offseason roster today.

https://twitter.com/steelers/status/583691050566291456

Green went undrafted out of Miami last year. He was signed as an UDFA by the Dolphins last spring, but didn’t make their roster. He had tryouts with other teams during the season, but nothing panned out. Now the 6’3, 264 lb linebacker will get another shot.

Green suffered multiple knee injuries early in his college career, but was able to stay healthy and start for all of his junior and senior year.  He totaled 83 tackles, 3 sacks and a forced fumble during his college career.

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Steelers Re-Sign DE Clifton Geathers

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The Steelers have re-signed veteran defensive end Clifton Geathers to a one year deal today.

https://twitter.com/steelers/status/583339233537961984

The Steelers signed Geathers last December after Brett Keisel suffered a muscle tear. Geathers never played a down for the Steelers, and was inactive during the games he was on the roster.

The Steelers are the 8th team the defensive end has been a part of in his 5 seasons in the NFL. Originally drafted by the Browns in 2010, he will get a chance to fight for a depth spot in camp this summer.

Geathers is 6’8″, 325 lbs. He’s the brother of former longtime Bengals defensive end Robert Geathers.

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Heyward-Bey’s One Year Deal Is For The Vet Minimum

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The Steelers signed veteran wide receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey to a one year contract on Thursday. The one year deal appears to be for the veteran minimum, which carries a base salary of $745,000. The signing also includes a guaranteed signing bonus of $80,000. Thanks to the veteran minimum salary benefit, his 2015 cap hit will only be $665,000.

While perhaps being more known for speed and questionable hands, DHB is a productive special teams contributor. Last season, Heyward-Bey played 127 snaps on offense and was thrown at 5 times during the regular season.

“It’s great to be back,” said the veteran receiver via Steelers.com. “I just wanted to stay here and be a part of a great organization and play for a great coach. That is what Coach (Mike) Tomlin is. I wanted to be back. For most guys free agency is tough, but I knew what I wanted. I knew the timing would take a little bit. For some guys it’s tough dealing with the unknown, but I knew what I wanted.

“I wanted to come back here. They have been honest with me from Day 1. In this business of the NFL, for them to be very honest with me, what they expect from me and me telling them what I expect. It’s an honest partnership.”

 

steelers draft

Steelers Receive 6th Round Compensatory Pick

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The NFL has announced the compensatory draft picks for 2015, and the Steelers have picked up an extra pick in the 7th 6th round. I expected the team to net at least a 6th round pick, but ultimately they’ll receive the 252nd pick as compensation for their net loss of free agents last offseason. *Edit- The NFL notified the Steelers that they will receive a 6th round comp. pick, not a 7th.

The Steelers were one of 14 teams to receive a comp pick. The Chiefs, Broncos, and Seahawks were the biggest winners, each receiving 4 extra picks. Here is the full (updated) list of 2015 compensatory picks.

Kansas City Chiefs: 3rd round (98), 5th round (172), 5th round (173), 6th round (217)

Denver Broncos: 4th round (133), 7th round (250), 7th round (251)

Seattle Seahawks: 4th round (134), 5th round (170), 6th round (209), 6th round (214)

Baltimore Ravens: 4th round (136), 5th round (171), 5th round (175)

Houston Texans: 5th round (174), 6th round (211), 6th round (216)

New England Patriots: 3rd round (97), 7th round (253)

Cincinnati Bengals: 3rd round (99), 4th round (135)

San Francisco 49ers: 4th round (132), 7th round (254)

Carolina Panthers: 5th round (169), 5th round (174)

Green Bay Packers: 6th round (210), 6th round (213)

St. Louis Rams: 6th round (215)

Pittsburgh Steelers: 6th round (212),

Indianapolis Colts: 7th round (255)

Arizona Cardinals: 7th round (256)

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Steelers Re-Sign James Harrison To Two Year Deal

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The Steelers have re-signed OLB James Harrison to a two year deal today. The financial specifics have not yet been disclosed, but you can expect this to be a low risk, low guarantee signing.

https://twitter.com/steelers/status/579686759950348289

https://twitter.com/jharrison9292/status/579688028618264576

Harrison teased the fanbase last night when he posted a video to his Instagram account. In the video, he asked his sons to choose where he should sign, Pittsburgh or Tennessee. The boys were split between the two. Along with the video, the veteran linebacker added the following caption:

“The opinions of my support team are split, but for me, my love for the man who both started, and made my career what it is, is undeniable. There are no words that I can find that would do justice for everything Dick LeBeau has done for me & my career and nothing can compare to that! I also have a great amount of love for Steelers Nation & the Steelers organization. I’m going to pray on this and let God guide me in the right direction.”

It’s not unreasonable to suspect that the stir Harrison caused last night may have forced the team to act sooner than they intended. It seems unlikely they wanted to sign him so early.

Per Chris Bradford of the Beaver County Times, according to Harrison’s agent, Bill Parise, the Steelers have re-signed Harrison to fill a rotational role. Parise says that the choice came down to Pittsburgh or Tennessee, but there were other suitors. Ultimately, he says, the decision to re-sign him this early in the year was about giving him a full training camp to get in the best possible shape.

Harrison rushed the passer 223 times last season, and registered 6 sacks. At 37, the Steelers will not want to rely on Harrison to play 60+ snaps a week, but he’s a very productive safety net who can help with the transition from coaching staff changes.

Ben-Roethlisberger

Roethlisberger’s New Deal Is 5 Years, $99 Mil

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The Steelers signed Ben Roethlisberger to a new contract yesterday. The financial details are starting to surface, and the total value is reportedly $99 Mil, and could reach $108 Mil after escalators.

If these numbers are correct, it makes Ben the second highest paid player behind Aaron Rodgers. In terms of new money, Rodgers’ contract sits at $22 Mil and Ben’s is $21.85 Mil. According to Albert Breer, Roethlisberger’s new deal pays $65 Mil over the first three years (’15,’16, and ’17) which is a record.

It’s difficult to say how his new deal will change his impact on the 2015 salary cap. His 2015 base salary was $11.6 Mil, and his cap hit was $18.395. I have a hard time imagining his 2015 cap hit will go up very much, if at all. The deal can be structured in lots of ways, and it’s even possible that it could go down slightly.

As Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk points out, Friday afternoon is generally reserved for teams and agents to drive by slowly while throwing bad news at the media’s doorstep, in hopes it won’t get the attention it normally would. So, it is a little odd that the deal was announced when it was, without any hint of financials. Florio suggests that this indicates that it was a team friendly deal, but that’s a bit of a deductive leap.

“It’s kind of hard to contain my smile when I’m excited to be at a place like this, to be home, and to be able to be here for my whole career,” said Roethlisberger via Steelers.com. “I know most of you have heard me say for a long time that this is where I have always wanted to be and where I have wanted to spend my whole career. This organization has given me an opportunity to do that. I just feel very blessed to have the opportunity to play for such a great franchise, with great coaches, great teammates, and the best fans in the world. I’m extremely happy that we got a deal done. It’s incredibly fair for both sides. We are just excited to move forward and get some more Lombardi trophies in that room next door.”

Roethlisberger added that he believed it was a fair deal. “I think it was an easy deal to get done from what I have heard from my representatives and then talking to the Steelers,” said Roethlisberger. “Easy deals that get done quickly are fair deals.

deangelo williams

DeAngelo Williams Has Visit Scheduled With Steelers On Friday

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Former Panthers running back DeAngelo Williams has a visit scheduled with the Steelers on Friday according to Adam Schefter.

https://twitter.com/AdamSchefter/status/575660547556900864

After spending nine years with the Panthers, Williams was released on Tuesday. The 32 year old running back was limited to 6 games last season, but has rushed for a total of 6,846 yards over the course of his career. He also knows Steelers QB coach Randy Fichtner from his days at Memphis.

With Bell facing a potential 2 week suspension to open the 2015 season, bringing on a back like Williams makes a lot of sense.

jason worilds

Jason Worilds Retires From Football

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Jason Worilds dropped an unexpected bombshell last night. He retired from football. The unrestricted free agent released a statement right around midnight last night.

“I appreciate all of the interest from the organizations that have reached out to us the past few days,” the statement read. “With that being said, after much thought and consideration I have chosen to step away from football as I have opted to pursue other interests.

“I am especially grateful of the opportunity to play before some of the greatest fans in football today. Despite any concern and speculation that may ensue, I appreciate those that are respectful of my decision.”

The Steelers selected Worilds in the 2nd round of the 2010 draft. The team used the transition tag on the outside linebacker last year, a total value of $9.754 Mil. Worilds tied with Cam Heyward for the team high of 8 sacks.

We’re only left to speculate as to why Worilds announced his retirement last night, 8 hours after the start of free agency. A report came out yesterday afternoon indicating that at least one team thought his asking price was way too high.  A source was quoted as saying- “We’re not paying $1 million per sack.”

The Steelers released a statement this morning regarding his retirement. “We respect his decision to retire and thank him for his five years in Pittsburgh. We wish him the best in his future endeavors.”

One underlying consequence of his retirement for the Steelers is the loss of a potentially higher compensatory pick next year.