Steel City Blitz
Cameron Heyward is in a tough spot. He’s used to that having played in the trenches during his entire football career. The ‘tough spot’ he’s in though deals with perception and optics far more than stunts and twists. Following his unexpected All-Pro season at age 35, Heyward wants more money. This is where things get difficult from certain points of view.
General fans of the Steelers see a guy who just signed a new deal (extension) last year at this time. So they immediately ask “Didn’t you get more money LAST year? And now you want more?” The die-hard fans who know the ins and outs of the team’s daily activities may ask similar questions. But they also understand what Heyward is getting at.
His argument is simple. He’s the 22nd highest-paid defensive tackle in the NFL. As an All-Pro that makes him pretty darned elite and he wants to be paid as such. We should all be able to understand this whether we like it or not. If you were constantly recognized for how great you are at your job, but were being paid way less than those less accomplished I’m guessing you’d feel the same way as Heyward.
This is usually where some fans scream about Heyward being a millionaire while they’re talking about an hourly wage. Stop right there. You can’t blame Heyward for NFL salaries. This is the market and he’s fighting for what he feels he deserves. He isn’t the one who set the salaries at these ridiculous prices. By the time he’s done, he will be the third highest-paid Steeler ever behind Ben Roethlisberger and T.J. Watt.
Heyward said yesterday that he told the team when he signed his extension that he’d “be back after an All-Pro season.” Well? He’s a man of his word and Omar Khan and Art Rooney II should not have been surprised by this. I doubt they were to be honest because they know how these things go.
Where Heyward has to be the most careful is when it comes to sitting out games. When asked about the possibility of doing that he said, “There are definitely options out there that could reflect that.” While Heyward has his detractors on his current salary request, he’s going to find few who will stand by him if he’s missing games. This is typically where fans stop siding with the player and start saying “get your ass on the field if you’re under contract.”
I do not believe it will come to that. Heyward said his representatives reached out to the team in February so again, no surprise to Khan, ARII or Mike Tomlin. In other words, they’ve had plenty of time to work the numbers on this. According to Over the Cap, the Steelers currently have over $19 million in cap space. Consider also that they almost always have about $5 million held back when they enter the season in order to sign free...
