Steelers Perfect Match is Still a Free Agent
PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Steelers have one roster spot available, and the player they should sign is still sitting around with little to no noise about landing elsewhere.
That player is Deion Jones.
The former Atlanta Falcons' second-round pick and Cleveland Brown last season remains unsigned after a down year in Cleveland. At 28 years old, Jones comes off his only season with the Browns, recording 44 tackles, including six tackles for loss in 11 games.
The inside linebacker spent the first portion of the season on Injured Reserve due to a shoulder injury, marking just the second time in his career that he's missing significant time due to injury. Heading into his eighth season, Jones has accumulated 12 interceptions, 11.0 sacks, 46 tackles for loss, 23 quarterback hits, and five touchdowns.
He seems like the perfect coverage inside linebacker, right? And isn't that the kind of player the Steelers are looking for, and almost signed with their visit with Kwon Alexander?
His market value remains a question mark, which could be pushing the Steelers away. However, coming off a down year and a major injury, you can't imagine he has a high price tag, especially this late in free agency.
Pittsburgh has roughly $11.1 million in available cap space, and like to bring around $10 million into the season in case of emergencies. If Cole Holcomb, who's the team's highest-paid inside linebacker right now, is only making $2.9 million this season, though, it shouldn't be hard to keep Jones within that $1-2 million range.
Jones just feels like the perfect fit. He has all the abilities Pittsburgh has searched years for, is still young enough to have a success run elsewhere in the league, and isn't coming with a high asking price.
If the Steelers couldn't work things out with Alexander, maybe they should keep looking at the inside linebacker market. And Jones is seemingly their best option.
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