Former Steelers cornerback Brice McCain has signed with the Miami Dolphins. His agent has just confirmed the news via Twitter.
https://twitter.com/davidcanter/status/575731283466264577
I reported last night that McCain was in Miami discussing a contract. The Steelers had a 3 year offer on the table, but were not going to get into a bidding war.
Free agent cornerback Brice McCain is in Miami tonight according to the Miami Herald. The two sides have already discussed a contract, and the Dolphins are reportedly very interested. The Steelers have a 3 year offer on the table according to Armando Salguero. The Vikings are also interested in McCain.
The Steelers signed McCain last spring, and the former Texans cornerback proved to be a good pick up. Of his 671 snaps on defense last year, the 5’9″ corner ended the season with 3 interceptions. We’ll see what comes of this over the next day or so.
The Steelers have released their end of week injury report and, with the exception of Lance Moore, things look pretty good. Here’s the injury report:
OUT: CB Brice McCain (groin), WR Lance Moore (groin)
DOUBTFUL: WR Martavis Bryant (shoulder)
QUESTIONABLE: OL Cody Wallace (finger)
PROBABLE: Matt Spaeth (hammstring), Sean Spence (knee), Greg Warren (knee)
With Lance Moore out, expect to see Justin Brown get some snaps in the slot.
The Steelers have concluded practices for today and here’s the injury report.
Did Not Practice: WR Martavis Bryant (shoulder), CB Brice McCain (groin), WR Lance Moore (groin), OL Cody Wallace (finger)
Full: TE Matt Spaeth (hamstring), LB Sean Spence (knee), LS Greg Warren (knee)
The biggest concern on the DNP list is Lance Moore. With Moore out, expect to see Justin Brown getting time in the slot. Brown played slot at Penn State before he transferred to Oklahoma State, where he was moved outside.
After tonight’s shut out against the Panthers, head coach Mike Tomlin addressed the media and gave some injury updates. There were two injuries of note according to Tomlin. WR Martavis Bryant has an AC (shoulder) sprain. Bryant left the game during the first quarter after getting shaken up on a play.
The other injured player Tomlin spoke of is CB Brice McCain. McCain left the game early with a groin injury. Mike Mitchell left the game with an apparent injury to his right leg. His return was described as probable, but he didn’t return to action after exiting with the injury.
The Steelers signed CB Brice McCain today. The deal was for one year at the vet minimum, including a $65,000 signing bonus. I can also give you the specific contract details for LeGarrette Blount, who signed with the Steelers last week, as well as a salary cap update that you likely won’t get anywhere else.
[table]
Player, Year, Base Salary, Signing Bonus, Salary Cap Number
“McCain, Brice”, 2014, “$730,000”, “$65,000”, “$635,000”
[/table]
McCain’s contract qualifies for the veteran minimum salary benefit, so his base salary will only count against the cap the same as a 2nd year player’s minimum salary would- $570,000. After displacement on the top 51, his addition will only move the salary cap needle by $140,000.
LeGarrette Blount’s 2 year deal can be seen below. His 2014 cap number is $1.375 Mil.
[table]
Player, Year, Base Salary, Signing Bonus, Salary Cap Number
“Blount, LeGarrette”, 2014, “$900,000”, “$475,000”, “$1,375,000”
“Blount, LeGarrette”, 2015, “$2,000,000”, “$475,000”, “$2,475,000”
[/table]
His signing displaced the top 51 cap number by $880,000. The Steelers had approximately $1.4 Mil in salary cap space before signing Blount on Friday. I know…you’re probably saying, “Steve, you’re wrong. So and so said it was $1 million!” The number that most people are using is from the NFLPA’s public spreadsheet. That number hasn’t been accurate for a while.
The NFL and NFLPA often don’t have matching salary cap numbers, and the NFLPA’s is not official. One major discrepancy is the way in which the NFLPA accounts for players who are designated June 1st cuts. With that out of the way, let’s wrap this up. After the signing of Blount and McClain, the team should be sitting roughly $380,000 under the cap by my calculations.
As you’ve likely realized, the team has enough cap room to sign another veteran for the minimum if they want to, without having to make moves to clear space. Thanks for stopping by and be sure to share with your friends.
The Steelers have signed free agent CB Brice McCain according to his agent on Twitter.
Congratulations to #TeamDEC client @McCain21 for signing with @steelers & joining client @Baby_Zilla76
— David Canter (@davidcanter) April 1, 2014
I reported earlier that McCain was in for a meeting with the Steelers today. The former Texans cornerback played in 16 games for Houston last year, and recorded 1 interception and 32 tackles. McCain was ranked last by ProFootballFocus last year, mainly due to his poor grades in pass coverage.
You must take their rankings with a grain of salt, though. The Houston Texans defense was PFF’s 6th worst ranked pass defense. Do you think that was because of the guy who started 4 games last year? (I hope you said no).
The signing of McCain is a low risk move to bolster depth. He’ll be an insurance policy who will compete for a job covering the slot. He also contributed on special teams during his 4 years with the Texans. Thanks for stopping by and be sure to share with your friends.
The Steelers are hosting street free agent cornerback Brice McCain today according to multiple media outlets.
Former Texans CB Brice McCain is also visiting the Steelers today.
— Scott Brown (@ScottBrown_ESPN) April 1, 2014
McCain was released by the Houston Texans three weeks ago mainly for cap savings purposes. He was drafted by the Texans in the 6th round of the 2009 draft. Primarily a nickel corner, he played in 72 games totaling 5 interceptions and 111 tackles.
The 26 year old McCain is 5’9″ and weighs 182 lbs. While he’s not exactly a special teams specialist, he did contribute there as well. Thanks for stopping by and be sure to share with your friends.