By: Sean McGeown, @seanpmcgeown
SteelerNation.com
The wounds are still fresh after the Pittsburgh Steelers Wild Card playoff loss to the Cleveland Browns Sunday night. However, as we all know the minute the season is over, teams are going to have players available on the free agent market. A tough position for both teams and players.
This off-season, Pittsburgh wide receiver, JuJu Smith-Schuster will be among multiple members on the team that will hit the open market. There has been a lot of speculation about who the Steelers will be able to retain given their cap space situation. Smith-Schuster has made it clear that he would love to stay right where he is in Pittsburgh. He doubled down on that by responding to a report on Twitter that he is reportedly looking for a big market team:
Sources tell me this is completely 100% false lol https://t.co/720GEWszRC
— JuJu Smith-Schuster (@TeamJuJu) January 13, 2021
Smith-Schuster has been under a lot of heat for his use of the app TikTok and some comments made before the playoff game against Cleveland. Some fans feel he gave teams motivation to come out and play harder due to his actions.
This could be true, but Smith-Schuster largely backed up his talk and actions this year. Smith-Schuster, working largely from the slot, posted 97 receptions for 831 yards and 9 touchdowns (career high). He also led the team in receiving yards Sunday night against Cleveland with 157, and had a touchdown to go along as well.
The season did not end how the players or fans expected, but Smith-Schuster played hard, and his loyalty to Pittsburgh has not wavered . Unfortunately, the Steelers are hard pressed due to their limited cap space, but if Smith-Schuster has it his way, he’ll be back in the black and gold for years to come.
Do you think Smith-Schuster will remain in Pittsburgh in 2021? Sound off in the comment section below!
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