The Steelers reached a contract extension Sunday night with defensive tackle Cameron Heyward that could keep the three-time Pro Bowl player with the team through 2024.
The deal, which includes some $65 million in new money, is the highest given to a defensive player in the NFL over 30.
But Heyward, who is slated to earn $9.5 million this season, has gotten better with age. The 31-year-old led all NFL interior linemen with 83 tackles in 2019, when he also recorded 9 sacks.
Heyward has recorded 32 sacks in the past three seasons, earning All-Pro status in two of those years. He had expressed some displeasure with the fact contract negotiations had stalled because of the coronavirus pandemic, but was happy to get this completed before the season began.
The Steelers have a long-standing policy to not negotiate new deals once the regular season begins. The team opens the regular season Sept. 14 against the Giants at MetLife Stadium.
Pittsburgh is where I belong! pic.twitter.com/mMj3DbKm4T
— Cam Heyward (@CamHeyward) September 7, 2020
The Steelers cleared some $4.85 million in cap space Friday by restructuring the contract of guard David DeCastro. But the team still isn't rolling in cap space.
And without fans in most stadiums to start the 2020 season -- including Heinz Field -- it could affect the league's salary cap in 2021. A floor of $175 million has been set on the cap for next season -- down from $198.2 million this year. The Steelers are projected to be nearly $20 million over that number.
"One thing we will know in four months is the result of the 2020 season. That’s a part of the equation in determining next year’s cap, so we’ll know a little bit more," team president Art Rooney II told me last week. "Unfortunately, the way this is looking, some of the uncertainty that we’ve experienced this year is probably going to carry over into next year for some number of months. Hopefully not too many."
The Steelers still have a number of other veteran starters headed toward possible free agency at the end of this season, including wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster, running back James Conner, linebacker Bud Dupree and offensive linemen Alejandro Villanueva, Matt Feiler and Zach Banner.