How to make the Steelers competitive again in 2023

Steelers cuts and restructures

Based on Over the Cap, the Steelers have a very slim amount of cap space, coming in at less than 200 thousand total. My tentative goal is to avoid restructures, as I don’t want to keep kicking the can down the road. My cuts are the players below.

William Jackson: Cap Savings of 12.1 million

The easiest cut on this list, William Jackson is likely the first man out the door this offseason. Traded to the Steelers before the deadline, Jackson never saw the field. Not, he has a massive cap hit of over 12 million, all of which can be saved if he were released. I do see a world where he could return on a reduced salary, but I personally am cutting him outright.

Mitchell Trubisky: Cap Savings of 8 million

A name that, according to the Steelers, doesn’t seem likely to be cut, I’m personally cutting bait with Mitchell Trubisky. You can sign a different veteran for less, and he will likely want to be here more than Trubisky does. The team needs a better veteran presence behind Kenny Pickett.

Chukwuma Okorafor: Cap Savings of 6.9 million

In my opinion, saving nearly seven million dollars over the production that Chukwuma Okorafor offers makes sense. You can invest in a better tackle in free agency for less of the total cost that Okorafor will have in 2023. I want this line to have some genuine improvements in 2023, so cutting Okorafor makes sense for the overall betterment of this group.

Ahkello Witherspoon: Cap Savings of 4 million

Another easy one here. While the Steelers have cornerback needs, Ahkello Witherspoon showcased his inconsistencies last season and it cost this defense. While he isn’t on a huge deal, he is an outside-only cornerback and didn’t play well for most of this season. He should be an easy cap savings cut.

Myles Jack: Cap Savings of 8 million

One of the hardest cuts to predict, Myles Jack was supposed to be a stabilizing force for this linebacker room. Instead, he became an overpriced liability. While I expected him to be back for the longest time due to the lack of players at linebacker, his benching late in the season was the final straw. It makes the room incredibly thin, but I can’t justify bringing Jack back.

Gunner Olszewski: Cap Savings of 2 million

While not a major cap hit in 2023, Gunner Olszewski was one of the biggest disappointments of the 2022 season. He was brought in as the returner but lost his role due to inconsistencies. He offers you next to nothing as a receiver. This is easy savings as he doesn’t offer this team anything.

With all of these moves, the Steelers cleared 41 million in cap space and now sit at 41.2 million total in cap space. I plan to only spend 30 million of this, as it saves some cap space for the season and the rookie class. So, my budget is now set at 30 million dollars to spend to improve this team.