ESPN: Steelers will 'explore' signing veteran safety Eric Weddle

ESPN: Steelers will 'explore' signing veteran safety Eric Weddle

by Bryan DeArdo



Upgrading their secondary is the Steelers' top priority this offseason, and that will include looking into signing free agent safety Eric Weddle.

According to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, the Steelers will explore signing Weddle, a free agent that will likely not return to the Chargers, his team for the first nine years of his career.

Weddle, 31, is a three-time Pro Bowler and two-time All-Pro. Similar to Troy Polamalu, Weddle, who has 19 career interceptions and 74 career passes defensed, is for known for his impeccable instincts, his athleticism, and his ability to thrive both in pass protection and in run support.

But for the first time since 2009, Weddle failed to play in all 16 games, as injuries sidelined him for three games in 2015. He also failed to record an interception for the first time since his rookie season last fall, while recording just 53 tackles, also his lowest total since his rookie season.

Despite his decline in production last season, Steelers coach Mike Tomlin is a big fan of Weddle, and praised the veteran safety prior to Pittsburgh's matchup in San Diego last season.

“I love Eric Weddle, always have,” Tomlin said. “He’s so versatile. He’s a sub-package linebacker. He plays strong safety. He plays free safety. He plays half-field, middle of the field. They blitz him. He’s a do-everything type of a player, and a good one.”

As always, money is a significant factor in free agency, and that might be the biggest determining factor when it comes to whether or not Weddle will become a member of the Steelers. But if negotiations get serious between the two sides, Pittsburgh might be willing to spend more than normal to acquire a player that should immediately upgrade the Steelers' secondary.

While Weddle didn't have a great 2015 season, DeAngelo Williams also didn't have a very good final season with the Panthers before the Steelers made him the best free agent signing of the 2015 offseason. Williams, who battled injuries during his final season in Carolina, was reborn in Pittsburgh, enjoying his best year in seven seasons while helping the Steelers win its first playoff game since the 2010 season.

Weddle could have a similar story in Pittsburgh, while possibly being one of the final pieces of the Steelers' Super Bowl puzzle.

http://pit.247sports.com/Bolt/ESPN-Steelers-will-explore-signing-veteran-safety-Eric-Weddle-43620658

It's a great "win now" move. If he's healthy he's still one of the top safety's in the NFL. And at the point of his career, he'd most likely want to play for a contender.

I wouldn't be upset with signing him but I can't help but be worried by his decline the last year or two. He's already close to the age Polamalu was when he became more of a liability.  He's undoubtedly better than what we have but I hope signing him doesn't prevent us from looking at safeties high in the draft.  I think best case scenario is he finds his 2011-2012 form and we get 2 good years out of him, anything past that would be wishful thinking.

he's got like troy's hair, just all on his chin

I would rather they go after someone younger with less injury history. He would really only be around for a year or two and not sure he plays a full season at his age.

Safety Much Likelier Investment By Pittsburgh Than Corner

Ask a Pittsburgh Steelers' fan what position they'd like to see brought in during free agency, and they're likely to respond with...

to read rest of article:

http://www.steelersdepot.com/2016/02/safety-much-likelier-investment-by-pittsburgh-than-corner/

It makes perfect sense for the Steelers.

1) He's an instant upgrade even if he's declining.

2) His age actually makes him very affordable to the Steelers.

3) Even if the Steelers draft a safety (and they should), the safety probably needs one or two years to get used to the defense. Weddle would be a big safety net for the Steelers which should be in all-in mode in the coming season.

I'd love to see Weddle come to the Burgh. Instant upgrade at the position. He had a bit of a down year, but he was injured, and throughout his career he's typically been pretty durable. This kind of player is the kind you take a risk on in Free Agency. He could be the Deangelo Williams free agent signing at the safety position.

Here's a list of all free agent safeties, their 2015 salary cap hit, and their current status.

You can also monitor free agents at all positions with this link. Just thought you guys would enjoy this tracker.


http://www.spotrac.com/nfl/free-agents/safety/

pczach wrote:

Here's a list of all free agent safeties, their 2015 salary cap hit, and their current status.

You can also monitor free agents at all positions with this link. Just thought you guys would enjoy this tracker.


http://www.spotrac.com/nfl/free-agents/safety/

Awesome link. Thanks!

Not to mention that we still haven't filled the Brett Keisel beard void.

Buddha Bus wrote:

Not to mention that we still haven't filled the Brett Keisel beard void.

or the stunting young players growth void, I think Weddle will fill both needs well.

PhantomJB93 wrote:

I wouldn't be upset with signing him but I can't help but be worried by his decline the last year or two.  He's already close to the age Polamalu was when he became more of a liability.  He's undoubtedly better than what we have but I hope signing him doesn't prevent us from looking at safeties high in the draft.  I think best case scenario is he finds his 2011-2012 form and we get 2 good years out of him, anything past that would be wishful thinking.

Spot on.

I'm ok with the signing if its NOT long term and we bring in someone who we can groom. The injuries last year and his decline in big plays will probably keep the steelers in explore mode and not sign mode.

Reason being, we had enough with our share of injuries and declining defensive players. We need a sure fire player there and personally would take a Safety in rd 2 and play him and let him learn on the job. a declining player and a player learning on the job would produce about the same BUT the learning on the job player we get 5 years out of

Ryan Clark Urges Eric Weddle To Wear His Old Number Should He Sign With Steelers

http://www.steelersdepot.com/2016/02/ryan-clark-urges-eric-weddle-to-wear-his-old-number-should-he-sign-with-steelers/

steelers5895 wrote:

I'm ok with the signing if its NOT long term and we bring in someone who we can groom.  The injuries last year and his decline in big plays will probably keep the steelers in explore mode and not sign mode.

Reason being, we had enough with our share of injuries and declining defensive players.  We need a sure fire player there and personally would take a Safety in rd 2 and play him and let him learn on the job.  a declining player and a player learning on the job would produce about the same BUT the learning on the job player we get 5 years out of

Yeah I'm thinking a 2 year deal would be good. MAYBE 3. Safety is a position that takes time to learn. After all, people thought Troy was a bust in year 1, and he ended up being an all-time great at his spot despite being terrible in his rookie season. Ideally I'd like the next man up to learn the system so the transition could potentially be seamless.

Fire Arians wrote:

steelers5895 wrote:

I'm ok with the signing if its NOT long term and we bring in someone who we can groom.  The injuries last year and his decline in big plays will probably keep the steelers in explore mode and not sign mode.

Reason being, we had enough with our share of injuries and declining defensive players.  We need a sure fire player there and personally would take a Safety in rd 2 and play him and let him learn on the job.  a declining player and a player learning on the job would produce about the same BUT the learning on the job player we get 5 years out of

Yeah I'm thinking a 2 year deal would be good. MAYBE 3. Safety is a position that takes time to learn. After all, people thought Troy was a bust in year 1, and he ended up being an all-time great at his spot despite being terrible in his rookie season. Ideally I'd like the next man up to learn the system so the transition could potentially be seamless.

Yeah, if he doesn't cost too much, he is an upgrade. I still like Thompson, Cash or Killebrew and cut Sharknado loose. Any one of those guys can play special teams and have upside, instead of #29 getting penalties on special teams.

El-Gonzo Jackson wrote:

Fire Arians wrote:

steelers5895 wrote:

I'm ok with the signing if its NOT long term and we bring in someone who we can groom.  The injuries last year and his decline in big plays will probably keep the steelers in explore mode and not sign mode.

Reason being, we had enough with our share of injuries and declining defensive players.  We need a sure fire player there and personally would take a Safety in rd 2 and play him and let him learn on the job.  a declining player and a player learning on the job would produce about the same BUT the learning on the job player we get 5 years out of

Yeah I'm thinking a 2 year deal would be good. MAYBE 3. Safety is a position that takes time to learn. After all, people thought Troy was a bust in year 1, and he ended up being an all-time great at his spot despite being terrible in his rookie season. Ideally I'd like the next man up to learn the system so the transition could potentially be seamless.

Yeah, if he doesn't cost too much, he is an upgrade.  I still like Thompson, Cash or Killebrew and cut Sharknado loose.  Any one of those guys can play special teams and have upside, instead of #29 getting penalties on special teams.

I still like shark as a special teamer, if he can fix those bonehead penalties he does on punt coverage, he can actually be one of those perennial ST aces. I don't think it will cost too much to keep him on the roster, I'd be all for keeping him on for the minimum as a ST guy. He could be like a more athletic version of ventrone.

Fire Arians wrote:

El-Gonzo Jackson wrote:

Fire Arians wrote:

steelers5895 wrote:

I'm ok with the signing if its NOT long term and we bring in someone who we can groom.  The injuries last year and his decline in big plays will probably keep the steelers in explore mode and not sign mode.

Reason being, we had enough with our share of injuries and declining defensive players.  We need a sure fire player there and personally would take a Safety in rd 2 and play him and let him learn on the job.  a declining player and a player learning on the job would produce about the same BUT the learning on the job player we get 5 years out of

Yeah I'm thinking a 2 year deal would be good. MAYBE 3. Safety is a position that takes time to learn. After all, people thought Troy was a bust in year 1, and he ended up being an all-time great at his spot despite being terrible in his rookie season. Ideally I'd like the next man up to learn the system so the transition could potentially be seamless.

Yeah, if he doesn't cost too much, he is an upgrade.  I still like Thompson, Cash or Killebrew and cut Sharknado loose.  Any one of those guys can play special teams and have upside, instead of #29 getting penalties on special teams.

I still like shark as a special teamer, if he can fix those bonehead penalties he does on punt coverage, he can actually be one of those perennial ST aces. I don't think it will cost too much to keep him on the roster, I'd be all for keeping him on for the minimum as a ST guy. He could be like a more athletic version of ventrone.

This is the last season of Shamarko. Why keep him around as a special teamer if you can draft a guy that can play safety in a year or 2 who ALSO plays special teams?

Say they have Mitchell and Weddle starting and Mitchell gets injured. Who is gonna sub in? Shamarko? I'd rather they still draft a guy that can play safety in Cash, Killebrew or Thompson and move on from the Sharknado mistake.

El-Gonzo Jackson wrote:

Fire Arians wrote:

El-Gonzo Jackson wrote:

Fire Arians wrote:

steelers5895 wrote:

I'm ok with the signing if its NOT long term and we bring in someone who we can groom.  The injuries last year and his decline in big plays will probably keep the steelers in explore mode and not sign mode.

Reason being, we had enough with our share of injuries and declining defensive players.  We need a sure fire player there and personally would take a Safety in rd 2 and play him and let him learn on the job.  a declining player and a player learning on the job would produce about the same BUT the learning on the job player we get 5 years out of

Yeah I'm thinking a 2 year deal would be good. MAYBE 3. Safety is a position that takes time to learn. After all, people thought Troy was a bust in year 1, and he ended up being an all-time great at his spot despite being terrible in his rookie season. Ideally I'd like the next man up to learn the system so the transition could potentially be seamless.

Yeah, if he doesn't cost too much, he is an upgrade.  I still like Thompson, Cash or Killebrew and cut Sharknado loose.  Any one of those guys can play special teams and have upside, instead of #29 getting penalties on special teams.

I still like shark as a special teamer, if he can fix those bonehead penalties he does on punt coverage, he can actually be one of those perennial ST aces. I don't think it will cost too much to keep him on the roster, I'd be all for keeping him on for the minimum as a ST guy. He could be like a more athletic version of ventrone.

This is the last season of Shamarko.  Why keep him around as a special teamer if you can draft a guy that can play safety in a year or 2 who ALSO plays special teams?

Say they have Mitchell and Weddle starting and Mitchell gets injured.  Who is gonna sub in?  Shamarko?  I'd rather they still draft a guy that can play safety in Cash, Killebrew or Thompson and move on from the Sharknado mistake.  

I'm thinking he gets once more opportunity in camp. I think we are drafting a rookie S. The camp battle will be between the rookie and Thomas. If it's a high draft pick rookie, Thomas will probably be gone regardless.

jak341 wrote:

I'm thinking he gets once more opportunity in camp. I think we are drafting a rookie S. The camp battle will be between the rookie and Thomas. If it's a high draft pick rookie, Thomas will probably be gone regardless.

It doesn't cost them anything to bring him to camp as his contract is cheap. I just think he has shown he will not starting any time soon, so for depth he provides nothing. If they sign a FA and bring Golden back as depth, or even Will Allen on a 1 year instead of Golden.

I'd rather they have a rookie with upside playing special teams than a bust.

Eric Weddle looking for team ready to contend

Posted by Josh Alper on February 19, 2016



The writing on the wall started appearing well before the 2015 season kicked off and the signs that safety Eric Weddle would be leaving the Chargers as a free agent this offseason never went away as the year unfolded.

The final act of Weddle’s time in San Diego came in a late-season dispute with the team after he was placed on injured reserve, all but guaranteeing that Weddle’s next time on the field would come in a different uniform. If Weddle has his way, that uniform will be one of a team in position to contend.

“In the next three or four years, are they going to be competitive, are they going to be division winners, are we going to have a chance at the Super Bowl?” Weddle said, via the San Diego Union-Tribune.

Prioritizing winning over salary should probably help Weddle’s job hunt, although different teams will surely have different comfort levels with plugging Weddle into their secondary. Weddle said he feels comfortable in any scheme, which should also help as he looks for his first NFL home outside San Diego.

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2016/02/19/eric-weddle-looking-for-team-ready-to-contend/?ocid=Yahoo&partner=ya5nbcs

Fire Arians wrote:

El-Gonzo Jackson wrote:

Fire Arians wrote:

steelers5895 wrote:

I'm ok with the signing if its NOT long term and we bring in someone who we can groom.  The injuries last year and his decline in big plays will probably keep the steelers in explore mode and not sign mode.

Reason being, we had enough with our share of injuries and declining defensive players.  We need a sure fire player there and personally would take a Safety in rd 2 and play him and let him learn on the job.  a declining player and a player learning on the job would produce about the same BUT the learning on the job player we get 5 years out of

Yeah I'm thinking a 2 year deal would be good. MAYBE 3. Safety is a position that takes time to learn. After all, people thought Troy was a bust in year 1, and he ended up being an all-time great at his spot despite being terrible in his rookie season. Ideally I'd like the next man up to learn the system so the transition could potentially be seamless.

Yeah, if he doesn't cost too much, he is an upgrade.  I still like Thompson, Cash or Killebrew and cut Sharknado loose.  Any one of those guys can play special teams and have upside, instead of #29 getting penalties on special teams.

I still like shark as a special teamer, if he can fix those bonehead penalties he does on punt coverage, he can actually be one of those perennial ST aces. I don't think it will cost too much to keep him on the roster, I'd be all for keeping him on for the minimum as a ST guy. He could be like a more athletic version of ventrone.

I get the feeling he can't.  As Tomlin puts it, "It's an above the shoulders problem with him."    

Really, how hard is it to not hit or interfere with a returner getting ready to field a punt.    

Eric Weddle, George Iloka or Tashaun Gipson?

by Ray Fittipaldo

From Eugene Mannarino: Who will be the one Steelers’ outside free agent?

Fittipaldo: As much as I’d like to tell you it will be safety Eric Weddle or cornerback Sean Smith, I don’t think the Steelers are going to pay what they’re likely to fetch on the open market. That hasn’t been the Steelers’ history in free agency. They’ve never gone after the first-tier free agents. Teams with lots of cap space will pay, and probably overpay, for those guys. What the Steelers have traditionally done is go after younger and ascending players who can grow in their system. Think of the Mike Mitchell signing. He was 26 when they signed him, and while he wasn’t unknown, he certainly wasn’t the marquee free agent safety of 2014. The Steelers got him for $25 million over five years. So if you look at players like that this season there are a few names. George Iloka of the Bengals is 25 and a really solid strong safety. They could probably get him for $5 or 6 million a season. Another name is Tashaun Gipson of the Browns. He’s also 25 and they might be able to get him in the same price range, maybe even a little less because he’s coming off a bad year. And I continue to believe, if they’re going to spend money on a starter in free agency, it will be a safety and not a corner. It’s Weddle in a perfect world though. If the Steelers do break from tradition he’d be an ideal candidate to plug into the starting lineup. And he wants to play for a contender.

http://sportsblogs.post-gazette.com/sports/steelers-steelers-blog/2016/02/19/Eric-Weddle-George-Iloka-or-Tashaun-Gipson.html

weddle and cromartie would be nice veteran pick ups. And a 1st round stud. That would help alot.