After failing to find a team willing to make a trade for his services, the Steelers on Monday released safety Morgan Burnett.
The move comes just one year after the team had acquired Burnett in free agency on a three-year deal to help bolster its secondary and replace Mike Mitchell.
But Burnett struggled through some early season injuries, and by the time he was capable of participating, rookie Terrell Edmunds, the team's top draft pick, had replaced him in the lineup. The Steelers also have added hybrid linebacker Mark Barron in free agency this year, making Burnett even more expendable.
Burnett appeared in 11 games in 2018.
"When we signed Morgan, we hadn’t drafted Terrell Edmunds yet," GM Kevin Colbert said last week at the NFL Meetings in Phoenix. "Those are two players who have been added into the mix that make it more comfortable for us to say we will try to move Morgan in a trade, and if not, we will probably part ways."
That wound up being the case for Burnett, who signed a three-year, $14.35-million contract last season to join the Steelers after eight seasons in Green Bay. Burnett would have counted more than $6.5 million against the team's salary cap in 2019. As it is, his release will save the Steelers $3.6 million.
Burnett, 30, asked the Steelers to release him in February after it became apparent his only use with the team would be as a dime linebacker. But the team waited until it had a competent replacement in place in Barron to do so.
LOLLEY'S VIEW
The season wasn't a lost one for Burnett in Pittsburgh in terms of this: His locker was next to that of Edmunds and the two could often be seen talking football.
If working with Burnett for a season helps in the long-term development of Edmunds, then the money was well spent. But obviously, this was a free agent signing that didn't work out, even though it was widely lauded at the time it happened.
