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The Pittsburgh Steelers were gifted cornerback Joe Haden by the Cleveland Browns. Browns management felt like Haden couldn’t perform up to his contract, and released the veteran prior to the 2017 NFL season. Guess what? They were wrong as they often have been for more than two decades.
Haden wasn’t available for long as the Steelers instantly were on the phone with his agent. The cornerback-hungry Steelers wasted little time giving Haden a three-year contract worth $27 million. Haden was given a two-year extension in September of 2019 to keep the corner in black and gold and the team was rewarded with Haden’s best year as a Steeler. He had 5 interceptions, and 11 pass breakups.
Now that two-year contract that he signed in 2019 has run its course, and he’s headed to free agency for the first real time in his career. Haden has already said he doesn’t want to make a transition to safety like other aging corners have done in their careers. Rod Woodson and Charles Woodson both successfully made the switch during their Hall of Fame careers.
The situation remains the same for the Steelers like it has for most of the last decade. They need cornerbacks. It appeared like the team had solidified their secondary in 2019 after the extension of Haden, the signing of Steven Nelson, and the breakout of undrafted free agent Mike Hilton. But three years later, Haden is the last of the bunch standing fin Pittsburgh.
Now Pro Football Focus examined several free agents, and predicted what they will get on the open market. This is what they had to say about Haden:
Now Haden has taken a step back since he signed his last major deal in 2019, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t a vital piece to the Steelers defense. When the Steelers haven’t had Haden on the field, they haven’t won many games over the last two years. They’ve won all of one game with Haden out since 2020 began. That doesn’t exactly bode well for the Steelers if he leaves town.
Now Haden had approached the Steelers prior to 2021 and asked for an extension. The Steelers were deep in negotiations with TJ Watt and declined to make an offer to Haden. Haden came out publicly and declared that he would test free agency. That will happen in a few weeks. It’s unclear if Haden is over valuing himself, or that if the Steelers wanted to see what they had in their young talent. Spoiler, it wasn’t that solid. James Pierre struggled in a starting role, and Justin Layne continued to be a non-factor on defense. The only bright spot was Ahkello Witherspoon who the Steelers acquired in a trade right before the 2021 season started.
Now, if PFF is correct and Haden sees little interest, and only $5 million offered, the Steelers would be silly to not match that number. They might even benefit from a two-year $10 million dollar offer if Haden wants a little more security. It just would make zero sense to get rid of him, even his presence is worth more than that amount.
In a year where money isn’t tight, the Steelers HAVE to sign Haden if he is as cheap as is predicted. What do yinz think? Click to comment below!
#SteelerNation
Support SteelerNation by clicking here to read the story..
Haden wasn’t available for long as the Steelers instantly were on the phone with his agent. The cornerback-hungry Steelers wasted little time giving Haden a three-year contract worth $27 million. Haden was given a two-year extension in September of 2019 to keep the corner in black and gold and the team was rewarded with Haden’s best year as a Steeler. He had 5 interceptions, and 11 pass breakups.
Now that two-year contract that he signed in 2019 has run its course, and he’s headed to free agency for the first real time in his career. Haden has already said he doesn’t want to make a transition to safety like other aging corners have done in their careers. Rod Woodson and Charles Woodson both successfully made the switch during their Hall of Fame careers.
The situation remains the same for the Steelers like it has for most of the last decade. They need cornerbacks. It appeared like the team had solidified their secondary in 2019 after the extension of Haden, the signing of Steven Nelson, and the breakout of undrafted free agent Mike Hilton. But three years later, Haden is the last of the bunch standing fin Pittsburgh.
Now Pro Football Focus examined several free agents, and predicted what they will get on the open market. This is what they had to say about Haden:
Now Haden has taken a step back since he signed his last major deal in 2019, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t a vital piece to the Steelers defense. When the Steelers haven’t had Haden on the field, they haven’t won many games over the last two years. They’ve won all of one game with Haden out since 2020 began. That doesn’t exactly bode well for the Steelers if he leaves town.
Now Haden had approached the Steelers prior to 2021 and asked for an extension. The Steelers were deep in negotiations with TJ Watt and declined to make an offer to Haden. Haden came out publicly and declared that he would test free agency. That will happen in a few weeks. It’s unclear if Haden is over valuing himself, or that if the Steelers wanted to see what they had in their young talent. Spoiler, it wasn’t that solid. James Pierre struggled in a starting role, and Justin Layne continued to be a non-factor on defense. The only bright spot was Ahkello Witherspoon who the Steelers acquired in a trade right before the 2021 season started.
Now, if PFF is correct and Haden sees little interest, and only $5 million offered, the Steelers would be silly to not match that number. They might even benefit from a two-year $10 million dollar offer if Haden wants a little more security. It just would make zero sense to get rid of him, even his presence is worth more than that amount.
In a year where money isn’t tight, the Steelers HAVE to sign Haden if he is as cheap as is predicted. What do yinz think? Click to comment below!
#SteelerNation
Support SteelerNation by clicking here to read the story..
