The Pittsburgh Steelers took the fanbase by surprise in the hours leading up to free agency. The team inked a one-year contract with veteran cornerback Asante Samuel Jr., preventing him from hitting the market. This made sense. But the move that followed was immediately questioned.
Shortly after signing Samuel, NFL insider Ari Meirov reported that the Steelers are expected to re-sign linebacker Cole Holcomb to a two-year, $5 million contract.
It's not that this is a bad contract. At $2.5 million per season, the price is right for the Steelers to keep a veteran linebacker with plenty of starting experience and a core special teams player around for 2026 and beyond. However, the decision to rush to sign Holcomb raises questions about a potential corresponding move looming.
The Pittsburgh Steelers could cut a veteran LB after the surprise Cole Holcomb signing
While Holcomb was a valued special teams player last season, he wasn't exactly an intrigal part of Pittsburgh's roster. The expectation was that, if the Steelers added a linebacker, they would look for youth through the NFL Draft.
But that's not the case with this signing.
Holcomb will turn 30 years old early in Steelers training camp this year. This signing means that the team could soon release one veteran linebacker.
While many Steelers fans would love to see the team move on from Patrick Queen after posting a 20.4 percent missed tackle rate last year and proving to be a liability in coverage, this likely won't be the case. Khan spoke glowingly of Queen at the NFL Combine. However, releasing the underwhelming linebacker would save Pittsburgh $13.33 million in cap space.
More realistically, the Steelers retaining Holcomb could make Malik Harrison the odd man out. Harrison proved to be a quality run defender late in the season, but he's got a steep $6.79 million cap number for the 2026 season, per Over the Cap, and is overpaid for a replacement-level backup. The Steelers would instantly free up $4.75 million by releasing Harrison.
Of course, it's possible that the Steelers could keep their whole group of linebackers intact while simply taking a flyer on Day 2 or Day 3 of the NFL Draft with a young player to round out the depth and compete for a roster spot.
Not allowing a reserve linebacker like Cole Holcomb to hit the free-agent market felt like a bizarre move that might be the precursor to a bigger Steelers roster decision coming.