Steelers mock offseason: Building Pittsburgh's roster from the ground up in 2024

Steelers roster cuts

My tentative goal is to not restructure any big contracts this season. With the salary cap rising organically, I feel like we can get around a T.J. Watt or Minkah Fitzpatrick restructure. This keeps their cap hits lower in the future.

I load up the Steelers roster on Fanspeak and first notice that Mason Cole is still on the roster. Even if he hadn’t been released, I had no intention of keeping Cole on this roster. His regression last year was hard to watch, and he was far too pricey given his poor play.

Larry Ogunjobi is next. While it seems likely that the Steelers keep Ogunjobi around, I think he is an easy cut. The defensive line is a mess, and Ogunjobi isn’t helping the team. You can save a little cap space, but you get to rip the bandaid off and embrace the rebuild.

Joining him is Patrick Peterson. I was never a big fan of the Peterson signing given his age and scheme, and his play was poor as an outside cornerback. He looked ok in the slot and as a safety, but he isn’t worth what he is getting paid. Allen Robinson is also cut, although I have some intentions of signing him to a reduced deal later on if he will take it.

Finally, I’m gutting the strong safety room. The duo of Damontae Kazee and Keanu Neal didn’t get the job done, and I would rather combine their salaries and land a competent running mate for Fitzpatrick. After these moves, the Steelers have 54 million in cap space (according to the simulator).