3 Steelers who shouldn't be back next year (but probably will be)

2. Larry Ogunjobi, DL

When the Pittsburgh Steelers signed Larry Ogunjobi to a one-year, $8 million deal during the 2022 offseason, I was in favor of this move. The defensive lineman was coming off a career year with the Cincinnati Bengals, and if not for a contract with the Bears that fell through for medical reasons, he would have been paid even more.

However, after seeing a one-year sample of Ogunjobi in Pittsburgh in 2022, I opposed his lofty, three-year, $28.75 million contract extension with the Steelers during the 2023 offseason. As the defensive line market in free agency dried up, it almost seemed like a desperation move by Omar Khan and the front office to retain Ogunjobi so they at least had one capable body on the DL to pair with Cameron Heyward.

Since then, the Steelers found a potential gem in DL Keeanu Benton. However, they still need depth when it comes to interior defenders. Meanwhile, Heyward turns 35 years old this offseason, and the former All-Pro missed the first half of the season with a torn groin.

The nearly 30-year-old Larry Ogunjobi is still certainly good enough to be on an NFL roster in 2024, but he really should be just a rotational defensive lineman at this stage of his career and after two years of mediocre play in Pittsburgh.

With a pricey cap number of $13.283 million in 2024, the Steelers would be wise to part ways with the unspectacular defender. But after just giving him a three-year extension last offseason, they are unlikely to do that.