The Pittsburgh Steelers have filled most of their holes in free agency, but a question lures on the defensive line that could force them into a tough decision.
The Pittsburgh Steelers entered the 2022 offseason with numerous holes on both sides of the ball. Ben Roethlisberger’s retirement left a major void at the quarterback position, while a large group of players hitting free agency left us with even more questions.
Fortunately, Kevin Colbert has been able to fill many of these voids with some solid football players. One position that is still a mystery is the interior defensive line. While Tyson Alualu is set to return from a season-ending ankle injury, he turns 35 years old this May and should resume his role as a part-time nose tackle for Pittsburgh.
The biggest question on the defensive line comes with Stephon Tuitt. After his best NFL season in 2020, Tuitt missed the entire 2021 season after dealing with the tragic loss of his brother in addition to a lingering knee injury.
Unfortunately, we’ve barely heard a whisper out of Tuitt or the organization regarding his status, and this was something I was hoping would have been cleared up long before free agency. Now that we are in the thick of things and no decision has been made (that we know of) the Steelers have a big decision to make that could come very soon.
Steelers could choose between Tuitt or Cox
One player who we know the Steelers have done a poor job of hiding their interest in is defensive lineman, Fletcher Cox. Before the trade deadline last year, Pittsburgh was dangerously close to striking a deal with the Philadelphia Eagles for his services.
The Eagles recently released Cox — making him a player who is available to instantly sign with any organization. With the unknown state of Stephon Tuitt, I would almost assume that the Steelers have already had some talks with Cox’s camp.
Tuitt and Cox have been two over the better interior defenders for years now, but this is a question that will come down to availability, and if Tuitt isn’t ready to play, the organization is unlikely to wait around for him.
At 31, Cox is the older player of the two, but he also has a better pedigree of work. The former Eagles defensive tackle is a six-time Pro Bowl player who also earned first-team All-Pro honors in 2018. One thing that Cox has always had going for him is great health. In 10 NFL seasons, he has never played fewer than 14 games and he has suited up for 16 games seven times. The same cannot be said for Tuitt who has missed time due to injuries in 5 of 7 NFL seasons.
The Steelers know that they can’t go into the 2022 season without an answer next to Cameron Heyward on the defensive line, and I have a hard time believing they would want to enter the NFL Draft with a big hole in this department.
Tuitt is still under contract, but cutting him would result in nearly $9.7 million in dead cap space with just $4.3 million in savings, according to Over the Cap. If they are planning on parting with Tuitt, designating him as a post-June 1st cut makes the most sense, as the Steelers could save over $9 million with just $4.9 million in dead money.
While Fletcher Cox can sign with anybody, I really think the Steelers are going to make a push for him if they don’t feel that Tuitt is going to return or if they don’t want him at his current cap number. The Steelers have a decision to make on their defensive line, and I think it could come down to these two players.