Free Agency moves the Steelers should have made this year
By Andrew Falce
Karl Joseph, S, Cleveland Browns
Contract Signed: 1-year, 2.5 million dollars
Karl Joseph was a hot commodity for the Steelers in the 2016 draft, as the Steelers had a lot of interest in the former Mountaineer. His career so far hasn’t lived up to his billing though, as injuries have kept him off the field too much in his young career. That said, his overall athleticism and lack of depth at the position would have made Joseph a great fit in Pittsburgh.
His injury issues wouldn’t have been as big of a concern either since he would be used as the top depth option at the position. While he would see playing time in sub packages, he wouldn’t be relied on to play all of the snaps as he has typically been asked of. As well, he could sub in as both FS and SS.
Again, Spotrac was over on their estimation of what he would get (they predicted 6 million per year for him). While he is likely hoping to rebuild his value on the 1-year deal, adding a little more money on 2-years could have lured him to the Steelers. Maybe a 2-year, 6 million dollars with a 2 million dollar signing bonus would have done the trick, making his first-year cap hit 2 million dollars. That is beyond a fair price to get a capable starter at either S spot.