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The Pittsburgh Steelers and Ben Roethlisberger may very well be nearing a contract decision for the upcoming 2021 season. Roethlisberger is at the moment slated to depend $41.25 million in opposition to the wage cap and the Steelers hope to re-negotiate his contract.
Each side just lately committed for next season. Roethlisberger said his intentions to return and ESPN insider Jeremy Fowler famous the Steelers are working in the direction of an amended contract on Saturday’s SportsCenter AM.
“Roethlisberger and the Steelers may hammer out a brand new contract as early as this week,” Fowler stated. “There’s actually no main rush. The deadline is basically March seventeenth with the beginning of the brand new league 12 months. You might have a $41 million cap hit, and so they have to deal with that. They might knock it all the way down to round $27 million if they provide him a dummy extension, some voidable years and type of kick it down the road and transfer across the wage cap. Or they’ll even ask him to take a pay lower if Roethlisberger is keen. However the important thing factor is that they determined they may area a cushty staff round him.”
Roethlisberger will enter his 18th NFL season in 2021. He accomplished 65.3% of his passes for 3,803 yards and 33 touchdowns in 2020. He led the Steelers to a 12-4 document and an AFC North divisional crown.
The Steelers finally fell to the Cleveland Browns within the NFL Wild Card spherical. The loss put a variety of highlight on Roethlisberger’s future with the group. Now, the eye returns to how the Steelers can return to the playoffs and key items in free company.
Roethlisberger’s contract is a giant sticking level in these plans. Steelers proprietor Artwork Rooney wish to have a decision by March 17 to keep away from paying the large-cap hit. March 17 can also be the beginning of the brand new NFL league 12 months.
“Ben Roethlisberger and I met yesterday morning and we had a productive assembly,” Rooney stated. “We had been in a position to focus on a variety of issues that relate to the place we’re and the place we need to go. Ben assured me that he’s dedicated to coming again to assist us win and I advised Ben that we wish to have him again to assist us win a championship. We each perceive that the following step is to work out Ben’s contract state of affairs.”
Ought to the Steelers get a deal finished, they’ll be capable of have the mandatory cap room to re-sign core gamers like Bud Dupree and Juju Smith-Schuster. The Steelers additionally have to discover a alternative for Maurkice Pouncey as he announced his retirement in February.
As Roethlisberger heads into subsequent season at 39 years previous, the Steelers are in a spot the place they need to win within the closing years of his profession. Each side appear to be on the identical web page as they give the impression of being to rebound subsequent season.
“I need to do all the pieces I can and made that very clear to them from the very starting that it was my concept to mainly assist the staff nonetheless I can this 12 months,” Roethlisberger advised Steelers reporter Ed Bouchette in January. “I don’t care about my pay in any respect this 12 months.”
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