The second wave of free agency isn't nearly as exciting as the first, but this is where each team's depth is fortified. On Friday, the Steelers gained some and lost some.
The Steelers are bringing in Le'Raven Clark on a one-year deal, adding much needed depth at tackle. However, they are losing receiver Steven Sims, who is in agreement on a contract with the Texans.
The Steelers officially announced the Clark signing Friday evening. The financial details have not yet been made public.
The Steelers lost Trent Scott to the Commanders in free agency, and needed to have someone to back up Dan Moore and Chukwuma Okorafor. Clark is a former third-round pick by the Colts in the 2016 NFL Draft, and has logged meaningful snaps at both tackle positions and right guard during his six-year career. The Texas Tech alum has mainly served as a backup, logging a career-high 44% of offensive snaps while playing with Indianapolis in 2018.
Since leaving the Colts, Clark played one season in Philadelphia, then played last season in Tennessee. However, he played a career-low 14% of offensive snaps with the Titans.
Sims was originally a restricted free agent, and the Steelers could have maintained the right to match any opposing offer by tendering him a right-of-first-refusal, which would have carried a cap hit of $2.6 million. The Steelers opted to not tender Sims a qualifying offer, giving him the right to survey the market with no strings attached.
Chris' take: Losing Sims really hurts the depth at receiver. The Steelers still have Diontae Johnson, George Pickens, Calvin Austin III, Anthony Miller and Gunner Olszewski. However, there are questions marks regarding the three receivers behind Johnson and Pickens.
Austin can be explosive, but how will he look after having surgery to repair a Lisfranc injury? Miller was dynamite in training camp, but can that translate to stadiums? And, with Olszewski, there was little to be excited about from what he put on tape. Sims rightfully earned a bigger role on both offense and special teams.
The addition of Clark certainly doesn't impact the Steelers' possibly taking a tackle in the early stages of the draft. He's been brought in for depth. The Steelers still would benefit from an upgrade, not just filling out the depth chart.
On the other hand, Sims leaving might make the Steelers a bit more eager to entertain a receiver earlier in the draft. As it stands right now, if Johnson or Pickens were to go down with an injury, the firepower at receiver would be quite lacking. I'm not sure if this is enough to all of a sudden thrust receiver into the conversation at 17th overall, but the first choice of two second-round picks shouldn't be thought as farfetched at this point.
