Steelers continue to spend money on everyone except T.J. Watt after signing key defender to contract extension
The Pittsburgh Steelers may be on vacation, but roster management is a 24/7, 365-day-a-year job. That much was proven late on Monday night when the Steelers extended starting safety DeShon Elliott… But if you're T.J. Watt, you're probably sitting around wondering what the team's priorities are right about now… Steelers extend Elliott amidst Watt holdout The […]
The Pittsburgh Steelers may be on vacation, but roster management is a 24/7, 365-day-a-year job.
That much was proven late on Monday night when the Steelers extended starting safety DeShon Elliott…
But if you're T.J. Watt, you're probably sitting around wondering what the team's priorities are right about now…
Steelers extend Elliott amidst Watt holdout
The #Steelers and safety DeShon Elliott agreed to terms on a two-year, $12.5 million extension including $9.21M in guarantees, per sources. After one of his best NFL seasons, Elliott finds a home in Pittsburgh on a deal done by CJ LaBoy and Quincy Peyton at Wasserman.
– Tom Pelissero, NFL Media (Via X-Twitter)
This move in the micro, is an excellent one from the Steelers. Elliott is coming off a career high in tackles while tying a career best in pass breakups and interceptions. He plays very similar to one safety of the Steelers past who wore #25, that being Ryan Clark.
High flying, physical, and fast, Elliott is always around the football with instincts that instantly popped after the team was missing that for some time, opposite of Minkah Fitzpatrick.
But if you're in T.J. Watt's camp, you have witnessed the team trade for and then sign DK Metcalf to an extension that pays him atop the WR market, despite having no sweat equity with the Steelers.
You watched the team hold up their entire free agency process on Aaron Rodgers despite him just signing last week ahead of mandatory minicamp. And now you watch the team sign a different defender to a contract extension, all the while being the subject of trade rumors regarding another playmaker.
That won't make anything easier on the Steelers when it comes to Watt's negotiations, I can promise you that. After all, it's Pittsburgh that waited for Watt to reach the final year of his deal before attempting to extend him.
If it were up to Watt, it would have been done a long time ago. We know that from his brother, J.J.
So I imagine this all comes out in the wash, and Watt will be happy to have Elliott behind him in the coming years, after he signs his own extension. But for the time being, he's probably getting tired of the chop liver treatment.
