Sign or Pass: Steelers Contracts Next Offseason

Looking ahead to the Pittsburgh Steelers' 2021 offseason, here are four players they'll need to re-sign or let walk.

The Steelers took care of business as much as they could with restricted cap space in 2020. 

The offseason ended the tenure for players like Anthony Chickillo and Sean Davis, but it allowed Pittsburgh to retain Bud Dupree, Mike Hilton, Matt Feiler, and others. 

According to Over The Cap, the Steelers will have roughly $5.7 million in cap space for the year, but after signing their rookies, that number will be somewhere near $900,000. 

So we'll move onto next offseason. Dupree, Hilton, and Feiler still need long-term contracts, and names like T.J. Watt, James Conner, Cameron Heyward, and JuJu Smith-Schuster will all be looking to get their next deal done as well. 

Here is a list of players who could see themselves back in Pittsburgh, and some are on the outside looking in when it comes to signing their next deal. 

Bud Dupree

We'll start with Dupree. After signing his franchise tag, the outside linebacker is set to make $15.8 million this offseason. While the Steelers want to keep him around for longer than the next year, it'll be much more difficult to pay him a $15 million salary in 2021. 

For Dupree to stick around, he's going to have to take a contract under the $15 million cap hit. If they sign Heyward, that number might not even be realistic. 

Everyone in the front office keeps talking about having Dupree and Watt together for the remainder of their careers. If they're realistic, though, it's going to come down to whether they want to keep Dupree or Heyward. 

Dupree's younger and could be more susceptible to a lower deal. He'll likely get the edge.

Contract: Sign 

Matt Feiler

Feiler moving back to left guard is going to hurt his pockets next offseason. There's a significant jump between guard money and right tackle money, and you don't pay someone who used to play tackle like he's still playing it. 

At the same time, Feiler and David DeCastro are the best remaining veteran linemen left on the roster. Maurkice Pouncey and Alejandro Villanueva are counting down the years as they pass, and when it's all over, Feiler will be there continuing to lead the pack.

The Steelers are going to make sure Feiler is a Steeler for the rest of his career. If they have to sign him to something in between a guard and a tackle, be it, but they won't let him walk.

Contract: Sign

Mike Hilton

People keep talking about Cameron Sutton overstepping Hilton, but at what point did Hilton need to be overstepped? He's still one of the best slot corners in the NFL and is only 26-years-old.  

That could be the problem, though. Hilton might have a price-tag too high for Pittsburgh to handle next offseason. Slot corners are becoming more of a priority for defenses, and Hilton would be a top tier signing for many teams around the league. 

It could come down to whether he's willing to take a significant pay loss to stay in Pittsburgh, which is likely won't happen. 

Contract: Pass

Cameron Heyward

We'll keep it simple - if you're going to sign Dupree, you're not going to find the cap space to pay Heyward. He's set to make a $13.2 million cap hit in 2020, and a new contract is only going to make that number go up. 

Heyward is the epitome of a Steeler. He loves this city, controls the defense, heads to the Pro Bowl what seems yearly, and is pushing for a few final years to earn his place as a Hall of Famer. 

It's not going to be easy to let him walk, but they might have to. If Dupree has the same success in 2019, he's a younger option who has proven himself. Justifying keeping Heyward because of reputation in the city is not how an NFL business is run. 

Contract: Pass

Noah Strackbein is a Senior Writer with AllSteelers. Follow Noah on Twitter @NoahStrack, and AllSteelers @si_steelers.