There weren’t many other options the Pittsburgh Steelers could have taken to keep their secondary together this offseason due to the financial burdens of last year’s COVID-19-impacted season. The salary cap dropped $15 million from where it was in 2020, amounting to about a $25 million swing from where teams likely expected it to be.
But now they have to replace these pieces, or at the least figure out who the fifth defensive back will be. Safety Minkah Fitzpatrick knows “it’s part of the business”, however. “It’s the next man up. We’re still figuring out what we’re gonna do, it’s still early, but come week one against Buffalo, we’re gonna have it figured out”.