The Pittsburgh Steelers had a wild and eventful 2024 offseason last year, and the next and upcoming offseason could be just as drastic. Last year, the Steelers completely cleared out their quarterback room, hired a new offensive coordinator, and invested more money into the defense. Some of the more notable defensive additions from last year's offseason include safety DeShon Elliott and linebacker Patrick Queen, who signed the biggest free agent contract in franchise history. As Pittsburgh prepares to attack other free agents, the Steelers have been strongly advised to go after a star safety from the San Francisco 49ers.
In 2023, Kenny Pickett and the Steelers' offense had a perfect preseason, which led to an exciting season-opening matchup at home against San Francisco. Reality quickly settled in for Steelers fans as the 49ers would destroy Pittsburgh 30-7. They would eventually make a trip to the Super Bowl. San Francisco's offensive group is led by guys like Christian McCaffrey and George Kittle, while the defense has elite play-makers in both the front and back ends.
Talanoa Hufanga just concluded his fourth season in the NFL with the 49ers and is now entering the 2025 offseason as a free agent. Hufanga made huge plays against the Steelers in 2023 as he had five tackles and intercepted one of Pickett's passes. Hufanga was drafted in the fifth round of the 2021 NFL Draft out of USC by the 49ers, but had a quiet rookie season. It wasn't until his second year when he really took off and put the rest of the league on notice.
Jordan Dajani, a member of CBS Sports, thinks the Steelers need to attack Hufanga in free agency, which would create a fierce three-way threat at safety with Elliott and Minkah Fitzpatrick.
"Hufanga was named an All-Pro in 2022 after recording four interceptions, nine passes defensed and two sacks to go along 97 combined tackles," Dajani wrote. "But unfortunately tore his ACL late in the 2023 season. Can you imagine what Pittsburgh's defense could be capable of with Minkah Fitzpatrick and Hufanga roaming the secondary?"
Although Hufanga had a phenomenal 2022 season and start of the 2023 season, he went down with a torn ACL in the middle of 2023 and has only played 17 games the last two seasons. Now through four years, Hufanga has finished his rookie contract and has an opportunity to get a nice deal.
The Steelers have the highest paid defense in the NFL, and it wouldn't be totally surprising if they went out and decided to spend more money on a guy like Hufanga.
An addition like Hufanga would create serious problems for opposing offenses in the NFL. While Fitzpatrick may have not had the 2024 season many had hoped, he's still a top-end athlete and is capable of being a top five safety. The emergence of Elliott really shocked some fans and he could be the team's best safety. A three-way trio between them and Hufanga would certainly help a Pittsburgh secondary that had some struggles against the pass.
