The Pittsburgh Steelers are entering a very important offseason in 2025. General Manager Omar Khan has had a very aggressive approach over the last two seasons, and it will be interesting to see how he approaches this offseason that has a ton of big questions needing to be answered. Pittsburgh will have the opportunity to make a splash at a few different positions, mainly wide receiver, but in order to do that, the team needs to use cap space. There are some players on the roster that are seen as cap casualties, meaning they could be released in order to save money.
Karl Roser / Pittsburgh Steelers
Steelers General Manager Omar Khan picks up the phone in the team's war room during the 2023 NFL Draft weekend.
The Steelers have some pending free agents, but they may have even more if they do in fact decide to release some players before the expiration of their contracts. There are a few obvious candidates for this, like Larry Ogunjobi and Cole Holcomb. Holcomb has been hurt for over a year and is still recovering from a brutal knee injury. He could certainly benefit from a change of scenery. Ogunjobi's contract has always been seen as bad, and it seems like a given that he is released.
Both Holcomb and Ogunjobi were mentioned by Over The Cap as potential cut candidates. The reliable website put a list together where they considered many factors, including the amount of money a player is due in 2025 and recent performance. One other Steelers player was mentioned on the list, and that was left guard Isaac Seumalo.
Abigail Dean / Pittsburgh Steelers
Steelers offensive lineman, Isaac Seumalo (#73) runs a practice during the team's 2023 minicamp at the UMPC Sports Complex in Pittsburgh, PA.
This may come as a surprise to some, but Seumalo did struggle a bit during the 2024 season. He was injured to start the year and he never really seemed like he was fully healthy afterwards as his performance wasn't up to his typical standard. Seumalo signed with the Steelers on a three-year deal ahead of the 2023 season. The deal was worth $24 million in total, and the offensive lineman carries a cap hit of $10.19 million in 2025.
If Pittsburgh decided to release Seumalo, the organization would save approximately $7.87 million against the 2025 cap. This would give Pittsburgh more room to work with in free agency. Seumalo is due a base salary of $6.875 million, along with a roster bonus of $1 million that will take effect on the third day of the new league year in 2025 (which would be March 14th). If the Steelers were to release Seumalo, it would happen before that date so the organization could save the additional $1 million.
Seumalo provides a ton of valuable experience to the Steelers' offensive line, which is relatively young. The offensive line has the potential to be starting three second-year players and one third-year player during the 2025 season, and the experience and leadership of Seumalo could be useful. It all depends on what the organization values more, additional cap space or valuable leadership on a struggling offense.
Taylor Ollason / Pittsburgh Steelers
Steelers' Dan Moore Jr. during offseason workouts in 2024.
Steelers' Offensive Line Could See A Lot Of Shake Up In 2025
Pittsburgh's starting left tackle, Dan Moore Jr., will be hitting free agency during the 2025 offseason. He will likely be with another team in 2025, and Broderick Jones is expected to finally go back to his natural position at left tackle. Second-year player Troy Fautanu is expected to be fully healthy by the start of the 2025 season and he will be the right tackle.
On the interior of the offensive line, Zach Frazier will continue to be the center with Mason McCormick at right guard, unless James Daniels is brought back for some reason. Seumalo will be at left guard, but if he is released, it should be expected that the Steelers will downgrade at the position with a rookie or another free agent.
Do you think releasing Seumalo would be a good idea? Let us know in the comments below!
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