Steelers Read & React: 2026 Free Agency Roundup

After an eventful opening week of the NFL’s free agency period, the action is starting to settle down around the league. All the marquee players on the market have signed new deals, and the remaining veterans will slowly be added to teams between now and August. We’ve also seen a handful of trades go down – and in Baltimore’s case, reneged – including one from the Steelers that we’ll discuss in further detail below. 

Now that all the major moves are likely finished until closer to the draft, this feels like a great time for Read & React to break down what moves the Steelers have made and review the free agent portions of both Ryan’s and Ryland’s offseason blueprints. 

Blueprint Review

RP:Each year, our blueprints are a fun exercise where both of us share what we would do to shape the Steelers roster. They aren’t meant to be predictions – neither of us is an insider, after all – but it’s a good way to highlight problem areas we see on the roster, and wager a guess at how the team might address them. Likewise, it’s fun to look back on our blueprints following each phase of the offseason and seeing how close our thinking was to the moves the Steelers would ultimately make. 

Here are some key takeaways following free agency:

• Quarterback questions. We took different routes here, with Ryan begrudgingly sticking with Aaron Rodgers and Ryland signing Malik Willis. Ryan’s doubts that Willis would be swayed away from the familiar coaching staff that is now in Miami ultimately proved true. To Ryland’s credit, he said he would change course if Willis demanded a contract in the ballpark of three years and $65 million, and Willis ultimately signed a three-year, $67 million deal. Barring a trade or a surprise retirement announcement from Rodgers, it looks like Pittsburgh will attempt to run it back with the veteran quarterback. 
• One wide receiver added.Both of us predicted the Steelers would add one veteran to the room, though neither of us predicted the exact player or that it would come from a trade. Ryland had Pittsburgh adding Jauan Jennings (at 3-$67 million) while Ryan went with Romeo Doubs (at 4-$48 million). Jennings is still on the market and technically could still sign with the Steelers, but neither of us would predict that at this juncture, and certainly not for the $20 million AAV he reportedly was seeking. Doubs’ market, meanwhile, ballooned past his suggested market value, and he signed for four years and $68 million with the Patriots. We’ll talk more about the Michael Pittman Jr. trade in the next section, but it’s safe to say we’re both pleasantly surprised and prefer that result.
• Safety focus. Both of us had the Steelers adding to the safety room in free agency, but Ryan was a little closer to what actually happened. He had the Steelers signing two safeties: Coby Bryant for two years at roughly $14 million AAV, and Ashtyn Davis as primarily a special teamer for $1.8 million. Instead, the Steelers signed Jaquan Brisker on a one-year deal for $5.5 million, and Darnell Savage on a (reported) one-year, $1.4 million deal. Bryant ended up signing with Chicago for three years and $13.3 million AAV.       
• A guarded market. We both also had the Steelers signing a cheap guard in free agency and then drafting a rookie in the second round. That scenario is still in play, but the Steelers have yet to add a guard. There was a report from Jordan Schultz that the team had reached a deal with former Cowboy Brock Hoffman, but that report was later disproven and withdrawn. 
• Upgraded CB2. Ryan had the Steelers adding Seahawk Josh Jobe for three years and $29.2 million in his draft, while Ryland didn’t have any free agent corners coming to Pittsburgh. The Steelers did decide to add a vet, but it wasn’t Jobe, who re-signed with Seattle; rather, it was Jamel Dean for three years and $36.7 million. 
• Who’s staying and leaving? The Steelers had 26 players who would be entering free agency and a handful of other potential cuts. Both of us nailed the Steelers moving on from Jonnu Smith. Ryan also had the team moving on from Patrick Queen, while Ryland had Malik Harrison on the chopping block. Neither has happened thus far. We both also guessed wrong on which corner between James Pierre and Asante Samuel Jr. would be brought back, as Samuel signed a one-year deal and Pierre left for Minnesota. We also both had the Steelers re-signing Esezi Otomewo. In addition to Otomewo, Pierre, and Rodgers, Ryan had Pittsburgh re-signing Ryan McCollum and Andrus Peat, which have yet to happen. In addition to Otomewo, Pierre, McCollum, and Peat, Ryland had them re-signing Kenneth Gainwell, Daniel Ekuale, Jeremiah Moon, Jabrill Peppers, Scotty Miller, and Corliss Waitman (most for camp battle purposes). We were both right about the Steelers letting Isaac Seumalo, Calvin Austin III, and Connor Heyward sign elsewhere.
• Odds and ends. Ryan’s predictions that the Steelers would add a cheap linebacker and tight end around the vet minimum haven’t yet come to fruition, but he was right that they’d add a punter. While he guessed they would try for Tommy Townsend, they instead went with the punter they cut before last season: Cameron Johnston. Ryan also predicted the Steelers would give Cam Heyward some new money early in the offseason to avoid another summer of contract headaches, and they did just that. Both of us extended Joey Porter Jr., as well, and that hasn’t happened yet either.

Big additions 

Now, let’s more specifically weigh in on some of the big additions the Steelers have made this offseason. 

WR Michael Pittman Jr. 

RP: I can’t speak for Ryland, but Pittman Jr. was not even on my radar as a possible get. In retrospect, it should have dawned on us that he might be had via trade if the reports that the Colts wanted to retain Alec Pierce for over $20 million were true, and they ultimately were. 

Pittman is a player who should quickly win over the Pittsburgh fanbase, and he’s a perfect complementary piece to what DK Metcalf provides. Pittman is big (6’4, 223 pounds) and can line up in all three receiver positions, though he is best in the role of a power slot. He’s a good run blocker as far as receivers go, and he’s got reliable hands. He can win vertically, but he should mostly serve in the short and intermediate areas of the field, so that the Steelers can deploy Metcalf more vertically. 

The Steelers are likely to add one or more receivers in the upcoming draft, and the style of receiver they draft could tell us a lot about how they plan to use Pittman. Ideally, I’d like them to add another player who can win on the perimeter so Pittman can get more snaps in the slot. 

RB: Ryan and I feel pretty similarly about Pittman so I’ll keep my thoughts short. He was a bit more on my radar as a trade target, but I don’t like predicting trades in the first place, and never would’ve expected Pittman to be available for just a Day 3 pick swap. Good business by Omar Khan.

Pittman, still just 28, lacks high-end speed and separation ability, but he develops chemistry with quarterbacks quickly and can run a fairly diverse route tree although he does most of his damage in the short game. He handles physical coverage well, and although there were a few more drops on tape than I expected, he largely has good hands and catches through contact.

As Ryan points out, Pittman can be a strong Z, power slot, or even a backup X, and I love how his reliable, chain-moving skill set complements the more explosive and volatile Metcalf. In the solid-but-unspectacular sizzle reel I’ve compiled below, you can see he doesn’t exactly toast top defensive backs, but knows how to make tough catches, take what the defense gives him, and still has just enough speed to separate when it matters the most. Pittman’s current skill set is what analysts mean when they drop the “veteran savvy” cliche.

But one thing is for sure: The Steelers, who really only have four true roster locks at the wide receiver position right now, still need some help, especially when it comes to speed and separation.

However, Pittman is the WR2 Pittsburgh has needed for quite a while, and he should be an instant favorite target for Aaron Rodgers once the veteran quarterback finalizes his return to the Steel City. I’d expect him to open up the middle of the field a bit more as well — per NFL Pro, Pittman ran in-breakers on 46.7% of his routes in 2025, which was good enough for fourth-most in the NFL.

CB Jamel Dean

RB: The Steelers signed the 29-year-old Jamel Dean to a three-year, $36.75 million contract in free agency, seemingly shoring up their starting cornerback duo for the next few seasons. 

Dean comes with some concerns, but I’m generally a fan of his tape and think he’s the quality CB2 the Steelers are paying him to be. He’s a little more compactly built than Porter (6’1, 206 pounds), but has a similar boundary/press skill set. 

Dean is incredibly physical in coverage, and that can lead to some penalties a la Porter, but it’s fun to watch him wear down receivers over the course of the game. It’s tough to separate early when Dean is pressing, and he uses the sideline well when in cover 3. 

Speed is Dean’s other standout trait. He ran a 4.30-second 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine, and even on the doorstep of 30 years old, he still looks blazing fast. He can carry receivers deep, and his closing speed when he drives on the ball is fun to watch. 

That said, Dean’s footwork and fluidity are still a little inconsistent. There are occasional stumbles and clunky transitions littering his tape, even if it’s not a major issue. He’s definitely better in man coverage than zone, though, where he’s more easily manipulated. 

In run support, I wouldn’t call Dean an elite defender, but his downhill speed and physicality do carry over to when he’s asked to blitz or tackle. 

The biggest concern with Dean might be his health – he’s missed 12 games in the last three seasons – although to be fair, he’s never appeared in less than 12 games in a season, either. Still, he’s never started a full season, and that gets slightly more worrisome as Dean departs his 20s. 

Still, I do like this signing. Dean should have some good years left – this is far from a Darius Slay situation – and if anything goes wrong, his contract is remarkably team-friendly. 

RB Rico Dowdle

RP: I know many fans were upset to see Kenneth Gainwell leave in free agency, as the running back had quickly become a fan favorite. I have little doubt, however, that Rico Dowdle will accomplish a similar feat in 2026. 

Dowdle has a ton of similarities to Jaylen Warren, both in playstyle and pedigree. Both players will turn 28 during the next season, and were undrafted free agents in their respective draft classes. Both backs possess 4.5-speed, and they both weigh around 215 pounds, though Dowdle has about three inches of height on Warren. But more importantly, they both look like human bowling balls when they tote the rock. 

If I may mix my sports analogies here, fans will recognize that, like Warren, Dowdle doesn’t have the type of game-changing speed that will lead to many home runs, but his initial burst and ability to break tackles does result in a lot of doubles. In 2025, Dowdle’s 24 runs of 10 yards or more finished in a tie for 18th in the NFL, along with Josh Jacobs, Ashton Jeanty, and Chase Brown. For more comparison, that’s fairly similar production to backs like Warren (25), Jahmyr Gibbs (27), Christian McCaffrey (28), and Saquon Barkley (29). Warren and Dowdle each also had 10 runs of 15 or more yards. 

Though Dowdle is on the older side for a running back, he hardly touched the ball during his first three seasons in the league. It wasn’t until 2024 – Mike McCarthy’s final season in Dallas – that Dowdle was finally given a full workload. He’s since turned in two straight thousand-yard seasons as a rusher and added 79 receptions for 552 yards and four receiving touchdowns during that span. 

In a vacuum, this is a good move. Dowdle is a good running back who has proven capable of producing like Warren when given a similar workload. This move feels oddly like cloning another version of Warren for the Steelers, which is certainly a positive. Still, it’s hard to get too excited by this move, knowing his age and that he signed just a one-year deal. The Steelers are continuing their pursuit of short-term, win-now moves that feel like they are meant for a team that is a lot closer to competing for a Super Bowl than the Steelers presently are.   

S Jaquan Brisker

RB: Brisker, at the one-year, $5.5 million price point the Steelers signed him at, is an undeniably good get. That said, it opened up a number of questions as to what the plan is at safety, as Pittsburgh now has a lot of defensive backs who are great near the line of scrimmage, and no true free safeties on the roster. 

But let’s start with the good. Brisker, at 6’1, 204 pounds, is a well-built safety and an aggressive downhill force. I’m a fan of his fearlessness in run fits, but also how well he navigates traffic as a defensive back. He does a good job getting around blockers, whether it’s through speed or physicality – he had 93 total tackles in 2025. He does whiff from time to time with arm tackles, but his run defense is an overwhelming positive. 

That skill set carries over to the next part of Brisker’s game I’ll highlight: his versatility. In a defense that used a fairly even mix of single- and two-high safety looks in 2025, Brisker found himself playing in centerfield, split-field, and box safety alignments throughout last season. Often, he’d be lined up like a linebacker on sim pressure looks, where he could be a force to be reckoned with rushing the passer. 

Don’t get your hopes too high – I saw Brisker get stonewalled by a pass-protecting Chase Brown a few times in 2025 – but his physicality and closing speed make him an above-average blitzer for a defensive back. 

In coverage, Brisker is more of a mixed bag. In deep zone, he’s disciplined enough and does a solid job covering his assignment, but he lacks high-end instincts, fluidity, and game speed. In two-high looks, he’s serviceable in coverage, but I wouldn’t call him an ideal starting free safety. 

However, Brisker is physical at the catch point and does a good job sticking with tight ends in man coverage. He’s not a complete liability in coverage, but he’s better against routes breaking in front of him than freelancing in space. 

Again, he’s a good, cheap player who will find a role in the Steelers’ secondary in 2026. But I wouldn’t say he completely fixed the team’s need at safety. 

DT Sebastian Joseph-Day

RP: Not to impersonate a broken record, but the Steelers’ signing of Sebastian Joseph-Day is yet another move that I like on its own, but come away wondering how much it will matter in the big picture of the Steelers’ Mike McCarthy era. Joseph-Day will turn 31 on March 21, and his two-year deal is frontloaded, meaning the Steelers can move on from him easily if he flounders this year. 

A sixth-round draft pick in the 2018 draft, Joseph-Day is a rotational player who specializes against the run more than he does rushing the passer. He’s got positional versatility that allows him to play nose tackle, but also anywhere else along the line. His game is all about power, and he excels at stacking offensive linemen, holding his ground, and then perfectly timing his block shed to make the play. 

Joseph-Day doesn’t provide much in the pass rush department, with just 16 career sacks, and never more than three in a single season. Ideally, the Steelers will use Joseph-Day on early downs to alleviate some of the struggles Keeanu Benton has had against the run. This would allow Benton to become more of a pass-rush specialist, which plays more into his strengths as a player. 

Big departures 

OG Isaac Seumalo (Cardinals)

RB: Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad the Steelers didn’t give the 32-year-old Seumalo the same three-year, $31.5 million contract the Arizona Cardinals did in free agency. Seumalo was fine in 2025, but that would’ve been a clear overpay long term. 

That said, I’m still unsure what the plan is at left guard. 

The issue is, there weren’t any easy answers in free agency this offseason. The guard market was always going to be expensive, but it exploded more than most expected, with Zion Johnson getting $16.5 million AAV and Wyatt Teller getting $8 million. 

But as the available guards dwindle and the Steelers still aren’t exactly cap-strapped, you have to wonder if the team would’ve been better off overpaying a bit for a veteran just to ensure the offensive line has five solid starters entering 2026 – something that feels like a near-necessity whether the Steelers have an aging Aaron Rodgers or green-behind-the-ears rookie under center in September. 

Or, maybe the team just has quite a bit of confidence in Spencer Anderson and a rookie entering 2026, although I’m not quite as optimistic. 

As some serviceable names are still available (cheap James Daniels reunion, anyone?), it’s too early to pass judgement yet. The Steelers probably weren’t wrong to move on from Seumalo, but they’ll need someone in his old spot Week 1.

RB Kenneth Gainwell (Buccaneers)

RP: I’ll look back on Gainwell’s 2025 season with the Steelers like Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca remembers his summer in Paris with Ingrid Bergman. It was a lot of fun, electric at times, even. But these two were never meant to settle down together. 

Gainwell is a solid player, and his late-game catch in Detroit will likely be one of the lasting memories from this past Steelers season. He deserved a chance to test the open market, and the Steelers are arguably no worse off replacing him with Dowdle. One could make the argument that Gainwell became a bit of a crutch for Rodger down the stretch. We’ve pointed out before that Rodgers has grown a tad gun-shy in his older age, and Gainwell leading the team in receptions (73) is further evidence that Rodger may have grown too reliant on checking the ball down – though to be fair, it’s not like there were many better options over the final two weeks of the season with Metcalf suspended. 

CB James Pierre (Vikings)

RB: I’ll be honest, it hurt to lose Pierre, one of my favorite Steelers in 2025, to such a cheap (two years, $8.5 million; Vikings) deal in free agency. Pierre was a late-career breakout, sure, but he was statistically elite in 2025 and a true CB2 opposite Joey Porter Jr. in the Steelers’ scheme. 

But in the context of the rest of the Steelers’ offseason, I’ve understood the move a bit more. The Steelers were able to sign Asante Samuel Jr. to a cheaper, even less high-stakes deal (one year, $4 million) and sign a more accomplished boundary cornerback in Jamel Dean. 

Plus, there’s Pierre’s age. Despite being new to the starting cornerback scene, he’s heading into his age-30 season – Dean is one month younger, and Samuel is three years younger. 

And while Pierre definitely outplayed Samuel in 2025, we have to be fair to the latter. Samuel hopped on a moving train after signing with the Steelers in mid-November after a months-long spinal fusion surgery recovery. He was a starting-caliber cornerback pre-injury, and should return to form with a full offseason in 2026. Plus, his smaller frame and quicker-than-fast playing style complements Pittsburgh’s starting press-man specialists nicely.

FB Connor Heyward (Raiders)

RP: We’ve been pretty hard on the younger Heyward over the past several years, and truthfully, he earned that skepticism. For most of his time in Pittsburgh, Heyward was better in theory than he was on the field. He’d often look hapless as a blocker, frequently struggling to find his assignment, and when he did, he lacked any semblance of control or power to benefit the design of the play. He wasn’t much better as a receiver either, with inconsistent hands and plenty of missed opportunities. 

But as frustrated and harsh as I’ve been with him over the years, Heyward started to turn the corner somewhat in 2025. I won’t pretend he became an elite blocker, but he started showing up positively on tape last year, helping to spring more positive rushing plays. He was also given the role of ball carrier in the Steelers version of the “tush push.” 

Heyward signed a two-year deal worth up to $5.5 million and with $2 million in guarantees, so it wouldn’t have been hard for the Steelers to bring him back if they had wished. I’m still a little shocked they didn’t, considering how much the team values familial bonds.

I can’t say I’ll miss Heyward greatly, but his departure does leave me wondering if the Steelers will look to add a fullback or do away with the position completely. McCarthy has carried fullbacks in the past. John Kuhn was on his Green Bay team for years, and in Dallas he had Hunter Luepke. The Steelers have 12 picks to work with in the draft, and I could see one of the later picks going towards Heyward’s replacement. 

Did the Steelers get better?

RB: Sure? The Jamel Dean and Michael Pittman Jr. additions alone boost two of the team’s biggest roster needs to a much improved level from 2025. Brisker is a positive update at safety, and Sebastian Joseph-Day is a level of quality above the likes of Dean Lowry and Isaiahh Loudermilk when it comes to defensive line depth.

Still, the team has some big questions at left guard and free safety, and depth is a major question on the offensive line and at wide receiver. You could throw tight end and inside linebacker in there as well, but let’s not get too nitpicky with the draft still upcoming.

But as optimistic as I want to be about some of these signings, the looming shadow of no answer at quarterback remains. Whether it’s the likely scenario of Aaron Rodgers returning or the more unlikely chance of a Kirk Cousins/Will Howard/Ty Simpson, it’s hard to see the ceiling of the 2026 Steelers being much higher than it was in 2025.

If the Steelers land a bunch of potentially foundational players on rookie deals in the upcoming draft (very likely!), I’ll feel better about this season. But as Ryan pointed out a few times above, many of the good free agent moves feel too short-term to matter a lot.

RP: In the sense that the Steelers’ starting lineup looks better than last year, it has to be a resounding “yes.” The Pittman and Dean additions especially give the Steelers massive upgrades to positions of need. Neither of them is necessarily a superstar, but they give the Steelers a baseline of competency that they were sorely lacking. If both can stay healthy, there should no longer be a WR2 and CB2 by committee. Joseph-Day adds some quality depth to the defensive line. So too could Brisker for the safety position. 

All that can be true, and yet I still don’t feel like Pittsburgh has raised its ceiling. With the team looking likely to run it back with Rodgers, I’m not sure they’re anything more than the 10-win team they were just a year ago. I’m even less certain that any of these additions beyond Pittman and Dean will be back in 2027 when the Steelers move on to their next starting quarterback. 

Join in on Steelers R&R by sharing your takes on this week’s topics. Feel free to pitch future questions in the comment section or on Twitter/X: tag @_Ryland_B or @RyanParishMedia, or email us at steelersreadnreact@gmail.com.