Devin Bush has no incentive to return to Pittsburgh
With the beating he has taken from the Pittsburgh media over the past several years and the shots that have been fired, there’s really no incentive for Devin Bush to return to The Steel City in 2023. It would be one thing if the former 10th overall draft pick was performing at a Pro Bowl.
While 2022 seems to be Bush’s best year to date, this is still a player the Steelers chose not to hand the fifth-year option to, and Omar Khan isn’t likely to overpay for him in free agency next year. Short of handing him a franchise tag (which wouldn’t make much sense at all for Pittsburgh) this team can’t stop Bush from hitting the market.
When he does test the free-agent waters, I am confident that another organization will be willing to fork up more money for the chance to revive the career of the former first-round pick. At 24 years old, Bush could still have a lot of years left in the tank if he proves worthy, but the Steelers haven’t found nearly enough success with him to risk a long-term deal.
Since his knee injury in 2020, Bush has continually graded out as one of the worst starting linebackers in the NFL, according to Pro Football Focus, and a slightly better season in 2022 isn’t going to fool the Steelers into believing that he should be around for the long haul. It just doesn’t make a lot of sense for either party involved.