Pittsburgh Steelers: Cameron Heyward Ready For Alpha Role
The Pittsburgh Steelers re-signed defensive end Cameron Heyward to a six-year, nearly $60 million deal recently as his rookie contract was set to expire after this season. Heyward has only been a ‘full time’ starter for the Steelers defense in one of his four NFL seasons thus far, but he took a major leap last season and seems ready for a much bigger role in Pittsburgh.
Since being drafted by the Steelers in 2011, it’s been apparent that Hayward understands the magnitude of playing for a team with such a rich defensive history, and now he gets to stake his own claim on a new role.
Heyward has been a solid player for the Steelers leading up to the 2014 season, but he vaulted himself into a bigger leadership role with his highest Pro Football Focus grade ever at a +24.6 and a whopping +17.4 in the pass rush department.
Pro Football Focus also credited Heyward with a team-high 36 QB hurries last season, and he finished the year with 7.5 sacks to go along with 53 total tackles.
It’s been a relatively slow ascent to this point for Heyward, but he has established himself as one of the best 3-4 defensive ends in the league, and received a pay day very comparable to that of Cameron Jordan in New Orleans. This is the type of player the Steelers love to build around — tough, physical, smart, one who appreciates the team’s rich history, and one who has embraced his role as a learner first and a leader second.
With Brett Keisel retired this offseason, along with Ike Taylor and Troy Polamalu, the time for Heyward to step up and be the vocal in the locker room has finally come. He will stake his claim as the heart and soul of the Pittsburgh defensive line, and perhaps as the captain of the defense as a whole.
This season would have likely earned Heyward a lot more money on the open market than the business savvy Steelers would have probably liked to pay, so getting him locked in to a new contract now was a pressing matter.
There’s a reason teams like Pittsburgh and Green Bay are always so good at developing and drafting players, and it’s primarily because they keep their own guys around at a pretty ‘discounted’ price. The market set right now for Heyward will certainly be different at the end of this season, and it could affect players like Denver’s Malik Jackson, another emerging 3-4 defensive end type.
At any rate, Heyward re-signing in Pittsburgh represents a changing of the guard in the Steel City, something that’s been in the works now for four years.