FanPost

The Steelers cannot afford to overpay Worilds, but they might..

Jason Worilds has been about as consistent this year as the Steelers are when facing teams with a lesser record. After the 2013 NFL Season, Worilds was given a 1-Year/$9.7 Million Tender in the hopes that he could build off of his 8 sack 2nd Half. However, that has not been the case as he only has 4.5 sacks so far through 13 games this season (which is good for 2nd on the Steelers behind Cam Heyward's 5). There have been periods where he has looked unstoppable (the Colts game for instance comes to mind), but he has proven he should not be counted on as a starter and is better suited to be part of a rotation.

In my opinion, the Steelers' biggest problem on Defense hasn't been their Cornerbacks, contrary to popular belief. If anyone remembers correctly, we won Super Bowl XLIII with arguably the same level of Cornerback play (Though with William Gay and Ike Taylor's roles reversed). The difference was that that year we had 51 total sacks. FIFTY ONE! This season we have an abysmal 24 total sacks. I think that will be the reason why the Steelers might overpay Worilds to keep him. The issue is that we simply have no one else on the roster to take his place and developing Pass Rushers takes time in this Defense. Dick Lebeau and Mike Tomlin are notoriously stubborn for having rookies ride the bench even if they could be able to contribute in certain situations. Personally, I think that Worilds shouldn't be paid a penny more than 3-years/$15-18 Million. However, I have a feeling that they might pay him along the lines of 4-Years/$25-30 Million based on their desperation to keep him on the roster.

The Steelers have fully transitioned from a Defensive stalwart to an Offensive Powerhouse. No longer are we in the days where we could win games on Defense alone. I know this saying has been said a lot over the past few years, but it is truer now than it has ever been: These aren't your Daddy's Steelers.

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