The Pittsburgh Steelers have launched OT Zach Banner, the crew introduced at the moment.
We have now terminated the contract of OT Zach Banner. @BordasLaw https://t.co/KHqH0BYWiV
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) March 16, 2022
Banner was owed a base wage of $5 million this season. He logged only one offensive snap in 2021 after recovering from a torn ACL within the 2020 Week One opener. Banner was restricted throughout this previous yr’s coaching camp and although he gave the impression to be trending in the proper path, suffered a setback and was positioned on injured reserve to start the season. When he was activated, he struggled to decorate and see the sector.
Pittsburgh gave him a two-year contract price almost $10 million final offseason. However the deal didn’t work out and the Steelers are shifting on, clearing a bit of cap area within the transfer. Formally, the transfer saves $4.175 million in cap area previous to roster displacement. Banner’s launch creates a $1.625 million useless cash cost for 2022.
The crew re-signed Chukwuma Okorafor to a three-year extension earlier within the week and he would be the crew’s beginning proper sort out to open the season. Veteran Joe Haeg will function the crew’s high backup sort out and one among its most versatile linemen. He performed each place apart from middle final yr.
The Steelers might be available in the market for a lower-level free agent offensive sort out or look to draft one.
Banner, 28, must search for a brand new crew and proceed his NFL profession. Since being drafted in 2017, he’s began simply two video games, although has in depth work as a tackle-eligible. Signed by the Steelers in the summertime of 2018, he grew to become a fan favourite for his “reporting-eligible” on gameday and large persona off the sector. He beat out Okorafor to be the crew’s beginning RT for the 2020 season however tore his ACL within the fourth quarter of the opening recreation towards the Giants, ending his season. Pittsburgh nonetheless gave him a contract extension final yr however are shortly undoing that call after Banner’s disappointing 2021 yr.
