The Steelers continued to beef up their offensive line when they agreed to sign former Chicago Bears guard James Daniels to a three-year, $26.5 million contract, sources told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
The addition of Daniels (6 feet 4, 327 pounds) comes one day after they agreed to a three-year, $15.75 million deal with free agent guard/center Mason Cole.
Daniels, 24, was the 39th overall pick in the 2018 draft and started all 38 games in which he appeared for the Bears the past three seasons. His 2020 season was ended after five games because of a pectoral muscle tear.
The addition of Daniels and Cole means veteran free agent Trai Turner will not be re-signed and creates a lot of flexibility at center and guard for new offensive line coach Pat Meyer. In all likelihood, it indicated center Kendrick Green will be moved to guard.
Wallace in at corner
The Steelers also made their first significant move in the secondary, agreeing to a two-year, $8 million deal with cornerback Levi Wallace, according to multiple sources.
Wallace, signed by the Bills as an undrafted free agent coming out of Alabama in 2018, has seven career interceptions, two of which came in three games against the Steelers.
Wallace (6-0, 179 pounds) picked off Ben Roethlisberger to help seal the 2020 game in Buffalo, and did the same in 2019 against Devlin Hodges at Heinz Field. Wallace has started all 57 games of his career, including five in the playoffs, and allowed just 5.8 yards per target last year, according to Pro Football Reference.
Although he began his NFL journey on the practice squad, Wallace became the top cornerback for the Bills last season when Tre’Davious White went down with an injury. Wallace, who turns 27 before the season, provides insurance for the Steelers because Joe Haden or Ahkello Witherspoon are unrestricted free agents.
With Wallace and Cam Sutton, the Steelers have two solid veterans, even if they aren’t the biggest names. The Steelers also re-signed slot cornerback Arthur Maulet over the weekend, and second-year Tre Norwood can play inside, as well.
Wallace began his career at Alabama as a walk-on but eventually became a key contributor in the same secondary that included as All-Pro safety Minkah Fitzpatrick. Last year Wallace had a career-high 10 passes defended, plus two picks for the third consecutive regular season, and he added one more interception in the wild-card round blowout of the Patriots.
This was Wallace’s first chance to cash in on free agency, as the Bills signed him to a one-year, $1.75 million contract last offseason as a restricted free agent.
Adams coming back
When coach Mike Tomlin was asked late last season whether the Steelers may have found something in mid-season veteran Montravius Adams, Tomlin grinned and answered, “Juuust maybe.”
Apparently, that maybe became a yes. The Steelers are bringing back Adams for two years, $5 million, his agents told ESPN’s Adam Schefter Tuesday morning.
The 6-foot-3, 304-pound Adams came to the Steelers in Week 13 last season from the Saints practice squad. He stepped right in at nose tackle and started four of the last six regular season games. Adams, a Packers third-round pick out of Auburn in 2017, also had a sack and a quarterback hit in the playoff game in Kansas City.
Help was needed from Adams as the Steelers struggled to replace Tyson Alualu, who went down with a season-ending torn ACL in Week 2. Isaiah Buggs and even Cam Heyward had to play some nose tackle, but once Adams joined the mix, he played between 27 and 40 snaps in every game except for one he missed on the COVID-19 list.
Adams, who turns 27 in July, is quick off the ball and built a little like former Steelers nose tackle Javon Hargrave. He’ll likely back up Alualu, who’s set to return this year for his age-35 season.
With Adams back, the Steelers have plenty of defensive linemen in the fold. Heyward, Alualu, Chris Wormley, Isaiahh Loudermilk and Adams are safe bets to be on the active roster. But if they keep six, as usual, will that group be rounded out by Stephon Tuitt? If not, the Steelers figure to use a draft pick to get younger on the line in lieu of part-time contributors Henry Mondeaux and Carlos Davis.
Staff addition
The Steelers made another move Tuesday, adding Isaac Williams as their offensive line assistant. Williams will work under Pat Meyer, who was hired as the head offensive line coach last month. Meyer has extensive NFL experience, but Williams does not. He was at North Carolina Central last season and all his coaching stints have been at the college level. Williams himself played offensive line at Alcorn State from 2008-11 and was an all-conference selection.
Gerry Dulac: gdulac@post-gazette.com and Twitter @gerrydulac; Ray Fittipaldo: rfittipaldo@post-gazette.com and Twitter @rayfitt1; Brian Batko: bbatko@post-gazette.com and Twitter @BrianBatko.
First Published: March 15, 2022, 3:22 p.m.
Updated: March 15, 2022, 9:20 p.m.