With roughly two dozen free agents set to hit the market, the Pittsburgh Steelers will have some important calls to make deciding who to bring back. With Mike McCarthy at the helm and a new-look coaching staff in town, we can expect to see significant roster turnover in 2025.
But one player who should return on a contract extension is cornerback James Pierre.
Pierre, a former undrafted free agent out of Florida Atlantic in 2020, has been able to hang around the Steelers since his rookie season. After missing the cut on the initial 53-man roster, Pierre was signed back to the team... and he just had the best season of his career.
Pierre made a career-high five starts in 2025. Since taking over for Darius Slay in the second half of the season (who was eventually released by the team), Pierre turned heads with his impressive performance.
While Pierre will soon be free to sign with another team when free agency kicks off, the Steelers should focus on getting him back.
The Pittsburgh Steelers should sign free agent CB James Pierre
For his phenomenal showing in part-time action last season, Pierre earned an 86.2 overall grade from Pro Football Focus. This ranked second among all cornerbacks in PFF grades in 2025, trailing only Super Bowl champion and three-time Pro Bowler Devon Witherspoon (90.1 PFF grade).
Just as impressive was Pierre's lack of production allowed to opposing receivers in coverage. PFF credited Pierre for allowing just 16 receptions for 163 yards on the season, while allowing one touchdown to go with one interception. Quarterbacks had a 57.2 passer rating when throwing in his direction.
But there's a bigger reason the Steelers should bring Pierre back on a new deal.
According to contract projections from Spotrac.com, Pierre is expected to earn just over $1.87 per season in average annual earnings on a new deal in free agency. This is backup-level money and completely washes away all risk in having him return to the roster.
Pierre could either serve as a starting cornerback alongside Joey Porter Jr. for the 2026 season or as a sub-package DB for the Steelers next year.
Pierre will turn 30 years old at the start of the 2026 season, and top-end speed has never been on his side. Though his career got off to a late start, it's possible that he only has another year or two of his prime before his performance starts to decline.
Regardless, James Pierre is coming off an excellent season, and the price is right to keep him around—perhaps on a two-year contract. As long as another team doesn't come along and drive up the pricetag in free agency, this should be an easy call for the Pittsburgh Steelers.