Pre-Free Agency Steelers Contracts and Roster Cuts

Last week was quite newsworthy for the Pittsburgh Steelers, as they made several contract and roster maneuvers to, yet once again, be in cap compliance.

Here is a list of the moves made by the organization thus far:

• Early in the week, reports surfaced that the Steelers were looking to extend the contract of Heath Miller to gain some cap relief and by Wednesday it was announced that Miller signed a contract keeping him on through the 2016 season. Miller’s deal chopped off his number down from nearly $9.5 million to just over $6.1 million.
• Another Wednesday move brought in the news that safety Troy Polamalu has reached an agreement with the organization to extend his contract to $20 million over four years. The deal reduces Polamalu’s cap hit by $4.5 million heading into the 2014 fiscal year.
• More money was shaved off the cap when the Steelers release linebacker Larry Foote and left tackle Levi Brown as well as defensive back Curtis Brown. Foot was injured in week one with torn biceps and was out for the rest of the season. Levi Brown never actually played a down after being brought in on a trade with the Cardinals in October and suffering a serious arm injury during pre-game warmups in week 6. Those moves freed up an extra $8.5 million in cap space for the Steelers.
• After all the cuts and contract restructuring, the Steelers actually signed a player on Wednesday as well. Veteran Will Allen was re-signed with the team but terms of the deal have not been disclosed as of yet.
• On Friday Antonio Brown must of felt like a veteran as just like his legendary teammates, Troy Polamalu and Heath Miller, when he agreed to contract restructure. The move by the Steelers and Brown freed up nearly $4 million in cap space. Brown, who caught 110 passes last season will receive approximately $5.2 million as bonus prorated over the life of his contract.

The team is now reportedly $3 million under the cap, but with the start of free agency on Tuesday, look for more moves to come, including the possibility of releasing another veteran like Ike Taylor.