After a mostly quiet offseason leading up to the start of free agency, the Pittsburgh Steelers suddenly had their hands full with an influx of moves in the first two days of free agency. Things kicked off with a bang as cornerback Cameron Sutton was snatched up by the Detroit Lions less than two hours after the legal tampering period began.
Shortly after, in a surprising move, Pittsburgh signed veteran CB Patrick Peterson to a two-year deal. Day two of free agency still saw more action than many fans assumed. Here's the latest Steelers news you need to know.
Steelers news:
After covering their bases at the cornerback position with the Peterson signing, Steelers fans were anxious to see what this team would do to fill several other holes on the roster. On Tuesday, Pittsburgh signed safety Damontae Kazee to a two-year contract. Kazee spend half of the 2022 season on IR but was good for the Steelers when he played.
#Steelers have agreed to terms with safety Damontae Kazee on a two-year deal, sources tell @theScore.
— Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report) March 14, 2023
Now the question becomes: do they view Kazee as a starter or more of the third safety who also plays in dime? The latter was his role last year with Terrell Edmunds as the starter. Edmunds still remains on the market, so it's not impossible to get him back, but is looking unlikely at this point.
The one thing that both Patrick Peterson and Damontae Kazee have in common is their ball skills. Peterson had five interceptions with the Vikings last season and Kazee had 2 picks in 9 games last season. He also had a seven-pick year back in 2018. Pittsburgh seems to be placing a high emphasis on play-making ability on defense.
More Steelers news:
In other Steelers news, Pittsburgh recently signed former Eagles and Jets offensive guard, Nate Herbig. At nearly 6'4'' and 335 pounds, Herbig is known for his run-blocking ability and he could help in this regard.
The assumption is that Herbig will at least compete with Kevin Dotson for a chance to win the starting left guard role (though he has played more snaps at right guard early in his career). The addition of Herbig means that Kendrick Green will likely be off the roster for the 2023 season. It could decrease the urgency to select an interior offensive lineman in the 2023 NFL Draft.
NFL news:
As the flurry of signings continued into the second day of free agency, a trade spiced things up. The Las Vegas Raiders are shipping tight end, Darren Waller, to the New York Giants.
Remarkably, the compensation comes at the price of only a third-round pick (the 100th pick in the draft, to be exact). Waller has been injured often in each of the past two seasons, but the price is right to take a gamble on one of the NFL's best receiving tight ends when healthy.