While there is plenty of hope and promise for the Pittsburgh Steelers this coming season, they do have a cloud of uncertainty hovering over them in the form of Cameron Heyward’s offseason holdout.
He isn’t participating in any workouts right now as he is looking to receive a contract extension.
The veteran defensive lineman is heading into the final year of his current contract, and he said that his holdout is just standard procedure, per ProFootballTalk.
“Have always attended these, but at this time it’s just contract negotiations, and I want to be a Pittsburgh Steeler, but we’ll see what happens,” Heyward said, via Brooke Pryor of ESPN. “I’m training hard. It’s nothing I’m not doing on and off the field. I’m doing everything possible, and we’ll get there when we get there.”
Cameron Heyward on offseason program absence: It’s just contract negotiations. https://t.co/gRQjD56EsK
— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) May 16, 2024
Heyward has played each of his 13 NFL seasons with the Steelers, and he was recently named to six straight Pro Bowls until that streak ended just last season.
His production greatly dropped in 2023, partly because of a groin injury that forced him to miss six games.
The Ohio State product had posted double-digit sacks in 2021 and 2022, but last season he only mustered 2.0 sacks.
The Steelers’ defense was very strong as they got back to the playoffs after a one-year absence, but now they have a legitimate quarterback in future Hall of Famer Russell Wilson, as well as a decent backup in Justin Fields.
They likely won’t finish first in the rough-and-tumble AFC North, but they should, at the very least, be a legitimate contender for a playoff spot.
Defensively, they have superstar pass rusher T.J. Watt, as well as Pro Bowl safety Minkah Fitzpatrick and a promising young cornerback in Joey Porter Jr.
