4 Steelers who will be playing for their future jobs in Week 18

Steelers never got elite play out of Larry Ogunjobi

Larry Ogunjobi has to go down as one of the bigger free-agent disappointments that this team has brought on in recent years. Signed shortly after Stephon Tuitt announced his retirement, the hope was for him to play like he did with the Bengals, where he was a force along the interior. This would help balance the defensive line.

His first season was lacking. A lot of that could be attributed to his late arrival to the team as well as lingering injuries that held him back. Surprisingly, the team opted to bring him back on a multi-year deal at a slight price increase. The hope was for a return to form following an entire offseason in this system.

Instead, it has been more of the same from Ogunjobi. He has the occasional strong game where he looks the part, but then he disappears for long stretches. This isn’t to say that his play has been as horrible as Cole’s has been, but the amount he is getting paid would certainly indicate this team wants more out of him.

His situation was a lot like Chris Wormleys from a few years ago. The Steelers traded for Wormely as he entered the final year of his rookie deal, and his season was unremarkable. The team re-upped with him though at a higher-than-expected rate and he excelled. Granted, he was mostly a backup, but a similar feel to what the hope was for Ogunjobi entering year two.

Like Cole, Ogunjobi has a bonus due, so the team will have to make a choice on him sooner rather than later. While cutting him leaves a starting size hole on the roster, it is hard to justify keeping him on the roster at his price. A great game this week could do enough to keep him around for another season.