Free agent safety Sean Davis won’t be part of Steelers future plans

The Steelers have some important decisions to make this offseason, but here’s why former second-round draft choice, Sean Davis, will not be part of the future in Pittsburgh.

This time of year, every NFL team has difficult decisions to make: Who to keep, who to let go, and who to go out and get. The Steelers have a number of players with expiring contracts that will need to be addressed. However, Sean Davis is not one of them.

Mike Tomlin made it a point this offseason to say that it is a “priority” to get a deal done with edge defender, Bud Dupree. The former first-round draft choice back in 2015 exploded in his fifth NFL season, and after establishing one of the league’s most dominant defenses, they would love to retain his services moving forward.

Javon Hargrave is another player the Steelers would no doubt like to keep, but I predicted this offseason, that both sides won’t be able to agree on terms to keep him in Pittsburgh. The Steelers are currently 30th in the NFL in cap space, and even a solid defensive lineman like Hargrave will likely be forced to hit the road.

Sean Davis has been an afterthought for the Steelers, and it’s not hard to see why. Heading into the 2019 season, it was thought that Davis would hold a lot of leverage in bargaining a new deal with Pittsburgh. The team was razor-thin at the safety position, and Davis was the only proven commodity.

However, everything changed when Minkah Fitzpatrick came to town. The former 11th overall pick by the Miami Dolphins turned out to be everything and more the Steelers could have asked for. He was selected to the Pro Bowl this season and made his first All-Pro as a 23-year old safety. Minkah’s miraculous play in the back end of the defense makes it an easy decision for Pittsburgh to let Davis walk this offseason.

While some have flirted with the notion of signing Davis and allowing him to compete with Terrell Edmunds at strong safety in 2020, and can tell you there will be no chance of that happening. The Steelers drafted Edmunds with their first-round pick in 2018, and there is no chance Mike Tomlin and the coaching staff are giving up on him before his 23rd birthday.

While the Steelers may have poor depth at the safety position, Sean Davis’s inevitable departure from the team is a very safe bet. Pittsburgh simply does not have the money to keep him around as a backup, and Davis is going to want to go to a team where he can compete for a starting job. He will be sporting a new uniform in a different city next season.