Time for Stephon Tuitt to ‘do it’ for the Steelers in 2019

Pittsburgh Steelers defensive linemen, Stephon Tuitt, was given a massive 5-year deal after his third season. Now it is time for him to earn his pay.

Steelers defensive lineman Stephon Tuitt is, by no means, considered a bust. The former 2nd round draft choice was 20 years old upon entering the NFL, and quickly raised eyebrows in Pittsburgh.

In his second season for the Steelers, Tuitt collected 54 tackles, 6.5 sacks, and an interception. But since then things have gone a bit downhill.

Over the past three NFL seasons, Tuitt has earned just 12.5 sacks in 40 games. Last year he failed to force or recover a single fumble.

After three years into his career, the Steelers made Stephon Tuitt a very rich man. He put ink to a deal that paid him $61M on a 5-year contract extension. Pittsburgh also ended up restructuring Tuitt after they found themselves in a financial bind. This pushed a lot of money into the final four years of his deal.

The Steelers are currently paying Stephon Tuitt $13.6M over each of the next three seasons -making him virtually unmovable. If, for some reason, Tuitt played poorly or wanted out, the Steelers would eat $37M in dead money over the next three season.

Stephon Tuitt certainly hasn’t played like a nearly $14-million dollar man, but the deal is done, and there is nothing Pittsburgh can do to change that.

There is hope, however. Tuitt has been playing banged up much of his career. In fact, Tuitt has yet to start all 16-games in a season (which can be a negative or positive, depending on how you view it). Because he wasn’t playing healthy last season (elbow), there is more reason to believe that he will be better in 2019.

Stephon Tuitt recently returned to the field during OTAs after a hamstring injury. Here’s a clip of him in some of his first action back:

Tuitt just turned 26 years old last month, so youth is on his side. When healthy, Tuitt has shown flashes of dominance with his rare combination of length and power. He also serves as an anchor against the run game when he is on the field.

Tuitt currently has one of the worst contracts on the team. It will up to him to prove his worth as a player who was handed a $61M check he probably wasn’t deserving of. It’s time for Stephon Tuitt to finally ‘do it’ for the Steelers in 2019.