Trade Speculation Immediately Heats Up For Steelers' Alex Highsmith: "Do It Now"

The Pittsburgh Steelers made a simple business decision on Tuesday to extend one of the best young passer rushers in the entire NFL. Nick Herbig received a big-time payday in a contract that could be worth up to over $100 million. It made sense in the grand scheme of things because of his age and splash-play ability; however, he is now set to make plenty more on an annual basis than one of the starters in front of him: Alex Highsmith. It certainly is an interesting situation that could eventually lead to some locker room tension building between the two.

Highsmith is under contract through the 2027 campaign, and TJ Watt is expected to be around through 2028. It seems unlikely that the trio of edge rushers in Pittsburgh will all be on the roster a year from now. This is mainly because there are not enough defensive snaps to go around unless the coaching staff gets extremely creative about how to get all of them on the field at once.

On Wednesday morning, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette beat writer Ray Fittipaldo appeared on The Fan Morning Show to discuss Herbig's big deal. When asked if a trade of Highsmith could come sooner rather than later, the reporter mentioned that anything is possible in the current moment.

"I think anything could happen, but, you know, if they did try and keep this group together, and they [traded Highsmith] after the season, isn't your value for Highsmith diminished," Fittipaldo said. "So, if you were going to do it, wouldn't you do it now?"

It would make more sense to go out and shop Highsmith in the present. While he is a dynamic playmaker and is consistently a great asset for the defense, the NFL operates as a business. As the beat writer noted, a team will be much more likely to give up significant compensation if Highsmith is under contract for two years and at a relatively low price, as opposed to one. Fittipaldo also paraphrased an idea that Mark Kaboly threw out there recently on an episode of Steelers Collective.

"You can go with this three, this trio, this year, you could see how it goes and maybe next year is the year you move on from TJ and you extend Alex Highsmith," Fittipaldo said. "Now, I never thought of it that way just because I don't think they're going to move on from TJ before that contract's over, but I do guess you have to keep your mind open to absolutely everything."

The options are pretty endless for the Steelers. They have three stout edge rushers, and the position is one of the league's most coveted. Anything could happen over the course of the next 12 months.

Herbig is now set to be a member of the Steelers through 2030, so he will not be the odd man out in any kind of deal. Highsmith and Watt are a different story. The two have done some incredible things for the franchise; however, the rising star deserves to see the field, which means some kind of big decision will need to be made by the front office.

General Manager Omar Khan has never been shy about making surprising moves. He is now put in a position to do so again prior to the 2026 campaign kicking off. A lot of teams would pay up for Highsmith's services, which will make speculation continue to run rampant following the Herbig extension.

Steelers Will Only Trade Highsmith If It Makes Sense

If a team comes calling and wants to pass along a late-round pick for Highsmith, Pittsburgh and Khan will likely hangup the phone immediately. Having depth is never a bad thing and as long as the locker room dynamic stays normal, there isn't going to be anyone forcing the Steelers to deal Highsmith. However, if an opposing general manager comes along and offers the moon and he stars, it will be hard to pass up.

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