By: Jessica Costello
SteelerNation.com
It's time to focus on the start of this season, but you can't help but look ahead to the possibility of losing some familiar faces. Next season, quite a few starters' contracts are up and there's a chance that the Pittsburgh Steelers could lose some of them.
Contracts expiring include, JuJu Smith-Schuster, Alejandro Villanueva, Matt Feiler, James Conner, Bud Dupree, Mike Hilton, and Cameron Heyward.
Looking ahead, Pittsburgh's salary cap and the realistic ability to keep all of these players on the roster looks a little uncertain.
According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, the cap could potentially drop by nearly $80 million in 2021 instead of it increasing by $10 million. And the Steelers have only 38 players under contract next year, totaling $187 in cap liabilities in 2021.
This could mean that the Steelers could lose some of the previously mentioned players along with some others. So positions like offensive tackle could be losing both of its starters next off-season.
Offensive tackle is one of the highest-paid positions in the league and Villanueva and Feiler both have some reasons for fans to believe the team could lose them.
For starters, Villanueva is a 32-year-old veteran who is entering the final year of his four-year contract. Feiler is playing this season under the $3.2 million tender that he signed during the off-season. There is a solid chance that any other team could outbid the Steelers for him for the coming years.
What do you think, SteelerNation? Do you see the possibility of the return of all these players? Will the team bounce back in the same year if not? Let us know what you think in the comments section below.
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