Predicting what happens to Steelers 2021 signings in 2022
By Andrew Falce
With the NFL season over halfway done, here are some early projections of which of the team’s 2021 signings stay with the team or leave.
The Steelers have had quite the roller coaster of a season so far, but they have seen quite a bit of play from their free agency class. That said, this team has a history of making a lot of their signings one and done. In this post, I will look at the seven primary free agents the team signed in free agency (Zach Banner and Cameron Sutton won’t be included since they were re-signed before free agency actually started) and make the prediction if they will return for 2022 or not.
Steelers B.J. Finney
The Steelers were quick to sign veteran center B.J. Finney after the Bengals released him in the offseason due to his experience with the team. The expectation was that he would compete for the center job in camp with Kendrick Green, but he quickly fell out of that competition. Now, he is buried on the depth chart behind a struggling Green and has failed to get a helmet over J.C. Hassenauer.
Given his struggles to make an impact even as a reserve despite the line struggling as it has made Finney’s odds of seeing another contract with the team unlikely. He could get another minimum qualifying deal and be carried into camp, but it seems more than likely he enters free agency with no new contract. Considering his struggles this season, there is a real chance Finney is out of the NFL sooner rather than later.