Javon Hargrave wants to return to Steelers, seems resigned to fact he probably won’t

At one point during what was a reflective Sunday for Javon Hargrave, the defensive lineman slipped up while speaking to media in the M&T Bank Stadium visitors locker room.

Asked about the Pittsburgh Steelers’ outlook for 2020, Hargrave’s initial choice of pronoun spoke volumes — so much so Hargrave seemed to recognize the weight of it and quickly corrected himself.

“Of course,” Hargrave said moments after his fourth NFL season had ended, “I just know they are going to — well, it’s going to be a back-bounce season for us next year.”

From Hargrave’s perspective, will the 2020 Steelers be “they” or “us”? The answer might not be known until March.

Hargrave is tagged for unrestricted free agency, arguably the Steelers’ second-most valuable UFA-to-be behind Bud Dupree.

But with the Steelers lacking much salary-cap space and likely looking to prioritize the offense, and with Hargrave being roughly a half-the-defensive-snaps kind of player, the odds would seem to be against the Steelers bringing him back at the salary Hargave will likely command on the open market.

“I don’t know,” Hargrave said when asked if the Steelers seemed interested in negotiating a long-term contract. “I guess we will see in these next few months how it is and how it’s going to go.”

Repeatedly this past summer — the time period when the Steelers typically hammer out extensions with players entering the final year of their contracts — Hargrave said there were no substantive talks between the team and his agent.

Javon Hargrave came through the line like a bulldozer ?? @Jay_MostWanted pic.twitter.com/LQBtadR9e5

— The Checkdown (@thecheckdown) September 9, 2019

Even in producing a season in which he played a career-high in snaps (62.9% of the Steelers’ total), had a career-best 60 tackles and was rated by Pro Football Focus as having his best overall season (PFF graded him as the eighth-best of 74 eligible NFL interior defensive linemen), it would seem it’s more likely than not that Hargrave has played his final game for the Steelers.

“It’s crazy,” Hargarve said after the season-ending loss to the Baltimore Ravens, “I woke up this morning, just kind of thinking I can’t believe it came to this. It’s coming to this.

“I didn’t really think about it (during the game) until basically time was running out and everybody coming up to me. That’s when I really just thought about it (possibly being his final game for the Steelers), and I took it all in.”

Hargrave has been solid for the Steelers since he was taken in the third round out of South Carolina State in 2016. But with Cameron Heyward and Stephon Tuitt being so good — and making so much money (they are scheduled to combine for a cap hit of more than $28 million in 2020) — on the defensive line, Hargrave is something of an odd-man out, particularly in the modern NFL when it’s increasingly rare tmore than two defensive lineman are on the field at once in a 3-4 scheme.

Kevin Gorman: 'Football is life' for Steelers nose tackle Javon Hargrave as he enters the final year of his rookie contract.

(Via TribLive) https://t.co/1xtYHXOJS8

— Kevin Gorman (@KGorman_Trib) May 30, 2019

Hargrave sounds as if he’s a man who legitimately wants to return to the Steelers — but also like someone who is sad to recognize it’s probably not going to happen, either.

“It’s not just about money; it’s more (about) that it’s like a family to me,” Hargrave said. “I love being here, I am comfortable being here. But at the end of the day it’s business. …

“I think we all are going to take a step back and everybody will do what’s best for them.”

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