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On top of everything else, just heard from #Saints CB Keenan Lewis, says he wants team to guarantee final three years of deal or let him go.
— Mike Triplett (@MikeTriplett) March 10, 2015
The Steelers waited through the first day of free agency with the only news worthy of reporting being the surprise retirement of Jason Worilds.
Perhaps another surprise is waiting.
Former Steelers cornerback Keenan Lewis wants his contract for the final three years of his deal with the Saints fully guaranteed, or he wants out of New Orleans, according to ESPN's Mike Triplett.
The Saints blew the roof off free agency Tuesday, announcing one of the biggest trades in NFL history. They sent All Pro tight end Jimmy Graham and a fourth round pick to Seattle for center Max Unger and a first round pick.
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The instability that may suggest - the Saints just signed Graham to a monster extension last season and are now in salary cap peril heading into the 2015 season - apparently is enough to make Lewis re-think his status with the team.
We'll consider this nothing more than a knee-jerk reaction for a frustrated player, as there is virtually no chance the Saints will simply guarantee the rest of his contract because of a trade they made that didn't involve him. It's not like the Saints got a poor return in the deal, either. Unger is known as one of the best centers in the game, and they scored another first round pick out of the deal, along with shedding a large portion of salary (even if the cap benefits don't help them a ton this year).
If they were to grant Lewis a release (a pre-June 1 cut or a trade would cost them $2 million in cap space, so even more reason to say this simply won't happen), the Steelers could be a potential suitor, should Lewis feel like coming back to where it all began.
Brice McCain is visiting Miami Wednesday, and has drawn interest from the Titans and Vikings as well. The Steelers seem poised to lose out on one of their better cornerbacks from 2015, and would head into the draft with restricted free agent Antwon Blake, at $1.5 million, holding down the slot cornerback position, behind starters Cortez Allen and William Gay.