Behind the Steel Curtain
Even though the last week of Steelers football has once again left us all with some heartburn and a bad taste in our mouths, we at Read & React hope that everyone has had an enjoyable holiday season and New Year’s all the same. We certainly took advantage of our week away from writing this column to reset and recharge with family and friends, and hope you were able to do the same.
This week, we’ll answer some questions from our readership, then give some updated matchup notes for the Ravens as the Steelers prepare for a win-and-in contest against their most bitter rival.
Earlier this week, we put out a call in The Feed for mailbag question submissions. We’ll be examining two questions we thought paired well together for a bigger conversation.
First from Blkgldtom:
2026 is the final season of the rookie contracts for Porter, Benton, Herbig, Washington, and Anderson. Who would you try to extend? Who will the Steelers try to extend? Who actually signs an extension?
And then from NHSteelersFan:
There was a lot of discussion/debate here last offseason about whether to trade or extend T.J. Watt. The Front Office obviously extended Watt. They also drafted Jack Sawyer, who’s looking like he has some serious potential. Herbig has one more year on his contract, and Highsmith has two more years on his contract. Do you think the FO will extend, cut, or trade either Herbig or Highsmith? While I love having all four of these EDGE players, the FO cannot afford three large contracts for EDGE players, can they?
With those two questions in mind, let’s discuss.
RP: I know there has been a lot of pessimism present in the fan base at varying points this season. The missed opportunity to clinch the playoffs against a three-win Browns squad has done nothing to alleviate those frustrations. I’m certainly not excluded from the voices calling for dramatic changes to the leadership structure of the organization this offseason.
But even with all of that, I do think it’s encouraging that the five players Blkgldtom highlighted are all players I believe are worthy of a second contract with the Steelers. Whether or not the Steelers will actually extend all five remains to be seen, but they presently have the ninth-most projected cap space ($17.3 million) in the NFL. I’ll save any discussion for how the Steelers could create more cap space for the annual “Offseason Blueprint” articles Ryland and I put together. All that to say, I’ll be speaking more generally about these contracts.
I’ll start with Herbig as he is present in both questions. I’ll let Ryland handle the specifics of how the Steelers should approach their pass rush room moving forward, but it feels prudent to contextualize where Herbig stands in his career and how that could play out for him on the open market.
Poll any Steelers fan — and likely general manager...
