The Pittsburgh Steelers have faced a lot of debate about what moves they would make when the league’s tampering period began on March 9. Very quickly, it became clear that General Manager Omar Khan had some decisions to make about the roster and which players the team truly wanted to keep heading into free agency.
Matt Freed / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Steelers General Manager Omar Khan speaking with members of the media.
Khan previously indicated that the Steelers were interested in bringing back both James Pierre and Asante Samuel Jr.. However, the early developments of free agency may suggest otherwise. As teams across the league began negotiating with pending free agents, it quickly became clear that Pittsburgh might not have been prioritizing Pierre as much as initially suggested.
In fact, Pierre wasted little time finding a new home. According to his agent and a report from Cameron Wolfe, Toney Scott, the cornerback has agreed to terms with the Minnesota Vikings, ending his time in Pittsburgh and leaving the Steelers with another hole to address in their secondary.
"Vikings have agreed to terms with CB James Pierre on a two-year, $8.5 million deal with $3.7 million guaranteed, per his agent Toney Scott," Wolfe said while speaking about the new deal. Pierre gets a $2.5 million signing bonus."
The Steelers did manage to get a deal done with Samuel early, before Pierre was stolen away in free agency. Pittsburgh signed Samuel to a one year, $4 million contract, making sure at least one familiar piece of the secondary would remain in place heading into the upcoming season. Getting that deal finalized early in the process was important because the Steelers clearly wanted some level of stability in the defensive backfield while the rest of the roster begins to shift around during free agency.
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Former Steelers cornerbacks James Pierre (42) and Beanie Bishop (31) during 2025 training camp in Latrobe, PA.
When you look at the situation, it becomes pretty clear that the Steelers viewed Samuel as the more essential player to keep. That is not necessarily a knock on Pierre, but it does show how the organization values certain roles in the secondary. Samuel brings experience and a skill set that the coaching staff clearly feels comfortable building around, especially as the team continues trying to solidify its pass defense moving forward.
Pierre’s time in Pittsburgh has been a bit of a roller coaster. There were stretches earlier in his career where he struggled to be a consistent contributor. Opposing quarterbacks were not afraid to target him, and there were games where it felt like offenses purposely attacked his side of the field. That type of inconsistency made it hard for him to truly lock down a permanent role in the defense.
Steelers Faithful Will Not Be Thrilled To See James Pierre Walk
At the same time, Pierre did manage to change the conversation during the 2025 season. His play improved noticeably, and there were moments where he stepped up in big situations. Because of that late surge, a lot of Steelers fans started to feel like he had finally turned a corner as a player.
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Steelers defensive backs Joey Porter Jr. and former corner James Pierre celebrate after a big time interception.
By the end of the season, there were plenty of people in Pittsburgh who believed Pierre had earned another chance to stick around with the team. The Vikings clearly felt that as well and they agreed to terms with Pierre.
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