6 best Steelers free agent signings under Kevin Colbert
By Brendan Howe
DeAngelo Williams
It’s not often that another franchise’s all-time leading rusher departs with tread still left on the tires. DeAngelo Williams arrived in March 2015, a two-year, $4 million agreement in tow. From his third year in the league, on, he’d split the rushing load with Jonathan Stewart. In Pittsburgh, he acted as emergency insurance for Le’Veon Bell, who missed 14 games over a two-year period.
With the All-Pro Bell barred for the first two games of the season, the former Carolina Panther filled in, stepping up and rushing for 207 yards and three scores in Bell’s absence.
The veteran would amass only 23 carries over the following six games but, after Bell tore his MCL in the schedule’s eighth week, he was thrust back into the starting position. The next outing, against Oakland, Williams played his best statistical contest as a Steeler, scurrying for 170 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
Notching—and bowing after—eleven rushing scores, Williams tied for the league lead in touchdowns on the ground that season. An ankle injury kept him out of the playoffs.
Bell was suspended once again for the beginning of the 2016 season. Two weeks in, Williams had rushed for more yardage than anybody in the league. The opening night, at Washington, saw Williams scamper for 143 yards and two touchdowns on 26 carries, enough to be named the AFC Offensive Player of the Week. In his spell as a Steeler, Williams rushed for a total of 1,250 yards and 15 touchdowns.