Steelers Hit With Expensive Price Tag To Extend Keeanu Benton

The Pittsburgh Steelers are about to enter 2026 training camp with two individuals not signed to an extension that are being looked at as second-contract players. Joey Porter Jr. has taken the most of the attention on that front, leaving fellow defenseman Keeanu Benton behind. There's still plenty of discussion going on with how much Benton can be worth on the trade market and/or what his contract in free agency might look like. 

Some suggest that he is worth a first-round pick and, with that value, it would make sense for Benton to search for a massive contract. While fans don't know where negotiations are at, there are some guesses of how much he would get if he went to the free-agent market.

Steelers beat writer Christopher Carter spoke about that on 93.7 the Fan on Friday and the number he gave was quite expensive. On top of that, he gave some insight on the upside that Benton brings, showing why teams would take the gamble on him to further develop so he could become a staple on a defensive line. 

"With Keeanu Benton, I’m not sure if [the Steelers are] gonna try to sign him," Carter stated. "If they do, I’d say he’d have to be around $20ish million. When I’m looking at Benton, there’s so much potential still. He can be such a dangerous pass rusher when left one-on-one, but he has not shown a consistent ability to take on double teams and to stuff the run. But, when you get that interior pass rusher that has his kind of skills, that can be so deadly in a defense. That’s where I think if he hits the open market, he’s making more than that. He might get a bigger $25 million contract."

There are a handful of options here for Pittsburgh to take with Benton. The best for this organization would be to keep him long-term. Whether that comes from extending him now or re-signing him in the future, keeping him on this team makes a lot of sense when thinking about the long-term projection of the roster.

Fans don't know how many years Cam Heyward has left, meaning there will be a massive hole opening up on the interior of the defense. Derrick Harmon should continue to get better, but the Steelers need as much proven depth as they can find to supplement the production Heyward brings to the defense. With that in mind, retaining Benton makes a lot of sense. 

There's also room to grow in his career. He showed some strong pass rush abilities in 2025, accounting for 5.5 sacks, but he could still improve on double teams and in the run game.

Perhaps newly-hired defensive line coach Domata Peko can help develop that out of him. Peko could help Benton develop on both of those areas of his game. If he unlocks those, Pittsburgh would have an even stronger core on their defensive line. The only problem there is that he would likely be worth more money. 

The Steelers need him to develop further and Benton is trying to show whatever he can to get the biggest contract possible. Getting him signed before he potentially improves some of the weaker areas of his game would help Pittsburgh out with production and saving money.

Steelers' Urgency To Sign Benton May Increase

When the post-Heyward era hits, the Steelers will need to find whatever way possible to find similar results from the interior of their defensive line. Benton and Harmon are two players that could fill the gap for years to come, but this contract talk regarding Benton may make him too expensive for Pittsburgh to retain, especially if they could just get another first round pick instead. This will be an interesting development to keep an eye out for moving forward. 

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