On February 15, the Steelers made their first big roster move of the 2025 offseason—releasing veteran edge rusher Preston Smith. For anyone who paid attention to Smith's contract details back when Pittsburgh acquired him from the Green Bay Packers at the NFL trade deadline, this was a no-brainer decision.
The Packers inked Smith to a three-year, $37.5 million deal during the 2024 offseason, which means the aging pass rusher would have been on the books for cap numbers exceeding $13 million in each of his next two seasons with the Steelers. By cutting Smith, Pittsburgh was able to ditch his enormous base salary.
For a player who didn't even earn a helmet late in the season, a roster cut decision has never been easier... but the Steelers can't stop here.
There's more fat-trimming that must be done before the start of free agency, and several players aren't worth the lofty contract numbers they are scheduled to receive in 2025.
Steelers must make more roster cuts before free agency
To maximize their roster-building efforts in free agency, the Pittsburgh Steelers will need as much salary cap space to work with as possible. After the easy decision to cut ties with Preston Smith, general manager Omar Khan, and the front office have over $53 million in salary cap space to work with, per Over the Cap. But we can do even better.
There are several players who don't move the needle for this team and are soaking up valuable cap space. Larry Ogunjobi should be next on the chopping block.
Out of desperation, the Steelers signed Ogunjobi to a three-year, $28.7 million deal during the 2023 offseason. Unfortunately, the veteran defensive tackle has been just a guy on their interior defensive line who, more often than not, is swallowed up by stronger offensive linemen in the running game.
Ogunjobi is scheduled to have a cap number of $10.533 million in 2025 with a $3 million roster bonus coming his way. The Steelers can save $7 million by cutting him loose before the start of the new league year. This is a decision they must make for a player who has become a liability to this team.
With Preston Smith already thrown back on the pile, releasing Ogunjobi is the next biggest salary cap move this team must make. But he isn't the only one. Pittsburgh could depart with one or all of Dean Lowry, Montravius Adams, and Cordarrelle Patterson for additional cap savings exceeding $2.2 million each.
With just a few additional roster cuts, the Steelers could be pushing $70 million in salary cap space entering free agency. What they've been doing hasn't been working, and it's time for bigger roster changes. It starts with trimming the fat.