Steelers could have done without the Chukwuma Okorafor extension

The Pittsburgh Steelers made some interesting offseason signings, but here’s why Chukwuma Okorafor should not have been one of them. 

During the legal tampering period, the Pittsburgh Steelers got off to a pretty exciting start. After landing quarterback Mitchell Trubisky and interior offensive lineman Mason Cole, Kevin Colbert followed this up with some intriguing additions with player like OG James Daniels and CB Levi Wallace.

However, one decision I have a hard time wrapping my head around is re-signing unspectacular offensive tackle, Chukwuma Okorafor.

As a former third-round pick, the Steelers had high hopes for Okorafor coming out of Western Michigan. Sadly, the project offensive tackle has failed to live up to lofty expectations. Despite starting each of the past two seasons, Okorafor’s play was underwhelming.

Regardless, Pittsburgh decided to bring him back on a three-year extension — and an expensive one at that. Okorafor raked in a deal that could earn him roughly $30 million through the 2024 season (an average of $9.75 million per year), via Over the Cap.

This is quite a steep number for a player who graded out as the 61st-best NFL offensive tackle last season among 83 qualifying players, according to Pro Football Focus. While his grade has slightly improved each season, PFF still believes he’s a below-average tackle, and his tape would concur.

Steelers overpaid for Okorafor

It’s hard to argue that the Pittsburgh Steelers got a good deal when it came to the Chukwuma Okorafor signing. Despite his struggles handling power and clearing paths in the running game, the fifth-year offensive tackle got more money than he was expected to get on the market.

Though the Steelers can technically get out of his contract after the 2022 season, they can’t do so without a cost, and Pittsburgh would lose over $6 million in dead cap space by cutting him next offseason.

This move was really a matter of making sure they had no major holes heading into the 2022 NFL Draft (which shows you how they feel about backups Zach Banner and Joe Haeg). While there were better offensive tackles out there, the Steelers decided to go with a player who already has a good deal of starting experience at right tackle.

Perhaps the biggest factor that enticed the Steelers was Okorafor’s age. Though he has already played four years in the NFL, he is still just 24 years, and improvement is certainly still possible. Likewise, Okorafor is a respectable athlete who fits their scheme well.

With a much more mobile and athletic quarterback, I expect Matt Canada to unleash his full offense in 2022. This change could potentially help the offensive line look drastically better than it did a season ago (especially considering the additions of James Daniels and Mason Cole).

Chukwuma Okorafor could prove to be a solid offensive tackle yet, but there’s no way I could have justified paying him that much money after the lackluster play we have witnessed from him to date. This was an extension the Steelers could have done without.