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Restructuring of Ike Taylor's contract is a positive move

While the Steelers have been making roster moves they have inched closer to the $123 million salary cap total. They're keeping Taylor in place for the future and creating a strong core at the cornerback position.

By Christopher Carter
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

After the release of running back Isaac Redman, the Pittsburgh Steelers were approximately $200,000 short of the salary cap limit on their roster for the 2013 season.

As usual, a Steelers veteran was able to work out a deal with the franchise to help out with the current salary cap issues. This time it was Ike Taylor.

Taylor restructured his contract yesterday making lessening the hit on Pittsburgh's salary cap with his contract by making the rest of his contract for this year a bonus rather than a salary. Thanks to this move, the Steelers are now $1.675 million under the salary cap for the year, giving them more of a cushion as they approach the halfway mark of their 2013 season.

Taylor's restructured contract all but ensures he'll be on the team in 2014; a good sign for all Steelers fans as William Gay and Cortez Allen are finding themselves within Dick LeBeau's defense behind Ike Taylor's big play as a cornerback.

The value in that is the establishment of a core group of cornerbacks - Taylor, Gay and Allen - in a pass-happy NFL.

The new contract also doesn't do the damage of what past major restructured contracts have, in that it does not put added money to next year making the salary cap harder to maintain in the near future. Pittsburgh's efforts over the past several years led to many veterans staying on a team in an effort to keep a nucleus intact that could win a super bowl. This move however does not appear to have the same impact upon the future that those decisions did at the time.

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