Ex-Cal Star Tyson Alualu: Coming Off Best NFL Season, Now a Free Agent
Former Cal standout Tyson Alualu presents an intriguing problem for teams interested in signing him: How do you value a defensive lineman who will turn 34 in the offseason, but seems to be getting better with age?
The Pittsburgh Steelers nose guard is coming off his best season in the NFL, but he now faces an uncertain future as he will become an unrestricted free agent on March 17.
His signing with the Steelers in 2017 and his move from defensive end to nose guard in 2019 seem to be blessings for Alualu, the 10th overall pick in 2010 by Jacksonville, where he played his first seven NFL seasons.
He had by far the best season of his career in 2019, according to Pro Football Focus’ metrics, and the site ranked his steep improvement (80.1 rating) the biggest surprise in the NFL among defensive linemen.
Biggest surprise: Tyson Alualu, Pittsburgh Steelers — 80.1
Ten years into an NFL career feels like enough of a sample, but that wasn't the case this year with 2010 first-rounder Alualu. His previous career-high grade for a single season was 66.5, but he shattered his previous grades in both run defense (79.9) and pass-rushing (68.2) this season with the Steelers.
Alualu then exceed that performance in 2020 at the age of 33, with a season PFF score of 89.6.
Pro Football Focus ranked Alualu No. 108 among unrestricted free agents this year, and predicted he would sign a one-year deal with Jacksonville:
After nine years of average to below-average grades and a career-high grade of 66.5, Alualu turned things around with an 80.1 grade in 2019 and an 86.6 mark in 2020. He became sound in the run game and a reasonable pass-rusher who can provide a good 400-500 snaps as part of a defensive line rotation.
Contract Analysis: We don’t often see a career year for a player in his age-33 season, but that’s just what Alualu did. The blueprint for an interior defensive lineman who was a 2010 top-10 pick has been set by Ndamukong Suh, so fortunately we have some solid precedent to work off of here.
Prediction: Jaguars sign Alualu for one year, $6 million fully guaranteed.
Sports Illustrated places Alualu at No. 149 in its free-agent rankings.
Prior to the 2019 season, Alualu signed a 2 year, $5,750,000 contract with the Steelers, including a $1,750,000 signing bonus, $1,750,000 guaranteed, and an average annual salary of $2,875,000.
Predicting the salary he can command this time around is difficult. He seems to be improving, but he will 34 years old on May 12.
Virtually every media outlet that covers the Steelers is encouraging the Steelers to re-sign Alualu.
This will be a critical decision for the 304-pound Alualu, who will probably be signing the final contract of his career.
Here is sample of what various Pittsburgh media sources are saying about Alualu.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette first reported this:
Tyson Alualu: The veteran nose tackle will be 34 and plays only 43 percent of the snaps, but he is a solid run-stopper and a capable sub-package defensive end. With little proven depth on the defensive line, his cost should not prohibit him from returning.
More recently, the Post-Gazette’s Gerry Dulac reported this when assessing the Steelers’ defensive line:
Specifically, what will they do — perhaps need to do — about re-signing nose tackle Tyson Alualu?
Signing Alualu, who is an unrestricted free agent, is the only significant issue facing the Steelers on a three-man defensive line that features two of the best and highest-paid ends in the NFL — Cam Heyward and Stephon Tuitt. But it doesn’t mean it’s the only issue.
Two years ago, the Steelers signed Alualu, a former first-round draft choice, to a two-year, $5.75 million contract in free agency to replace Javon Hargrave. Not only should they be able to re-sign him with a similar size contract, they really don’t have much choice because they don’t have a capable nose tackle behind him.
Wherever they find him, the Steelers need to improve their defensive line depth. And they might have to start with re-signing Alualu.
The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review was equally eager for the Steelers to re-sign Alualu:
When nose tackle Javon Hargrave took the free agent riches offered by the Philadelphia Eagles, Tyson Alualu moved into a starting role for his first time in four years with the Steelers. In his 11th NFL season, Alualu brought a steady presence to the Steelers while moving from defensive end, and he had two sacks and a career-high five pass breakups.
The Steelers, though, find themselves in a similar position at nose tackle as last offseason. Alualu will be an unrestricted free agent in March, and he will turn 34 before the season begins. Alualu showed he still is a productive player in a limited role in the base defense, and the Steelers could try to coax him back with another two-year contract, which would be his third with the team.
Steelers Depot also was high on Alualu, saying his stock has gone up:
Stock Value: Up
Reasoning: At age 33, Tyson Alualu moved inside to defensive tackle in the Steelers’ front and turned in arguably the best season of his career, though his performance suffered late in the year following an injury.
It was no surprise that they struggled mightily on the ground in the two games that he missed (outside of a few snaps in the game in which he went down with his injury), but it’s also true that he played a bit of a step down when he returned from said injury.
Now the question is what comes next? Alualu will be 34 in May. He can certainly still play, but will he want to, and at what salary? He hasn’t necessarily been cheap. But as we have discussed here, the new qualifying contract that was installed in the new CBA is something that could work for both sides as they take the rest of his career on a year-to-year basis.
Finally, Behind the Steel Curtain suggests Alualu is one of six free agents the Steelers might keep.
Although he is set to turn 34 this offseason, Tyson Alualu is coming off arguably the best season of his career. In 2020, Alualu and made Steelers’ fans forget about the loss of Javon Hargrave as Alualu finished ranked in the top 10 of all interior defensive linemen according to Pro Football Focus. With a career high five passes defensed, Alualu added two sacks, five quarterback hits, four tackles for loss, and helped to create chaos in the middle of the Steelers defense. Bringing him back for an inexpensive two-year deal in order to sure up the defensive line would not be surprising at all.
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Cover photo of Tyson Alualu and Marcus Mariota by Christopher Hanewinckel, USA TODAY Sports
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