Steelers’ longest-tenured player, Cam Heyward: ‘Never know if (management) wants me back’

Less than an hour after a game in which he showed he still has it at age 33, Cameron Heyward was hesitant to express the Pittsburgh Steelers were committed to bringing him back for a 13th season.

“I want to take time to think about what’s going on,” Heyward said after having two sacks during the Steelers’ 28-14 victory against the Cleveland Browns in the season finale. “Obviously, I’d love to be here, but you never know what’s going on in the future. I don’t take this for granted. I’d love to be here, but you don’t know the plans.”

Heyward, who had a third sack Sunday taken away by penalty, ended his 12th NFL season with 10 ½ sacks to give him 78 ½ in his career. A Steelers co-captain since 2015, Heyward is a five-time Pro Bowl honoree who three times has been named All-Pro.

The Steelers’ second-oldest player this season, Heyward will turn 34 in May. His contract runs through 2024 but is non-guaranteed. Heyward is scheduled to make $15.85 million next season with a $22.26 million salary-cap hit. If the Steelers were to cut Heyward he would account for $12.8 million against the cap, meaning the Steelers would save almost $10 million.

“I’d like to be back,” Heyward said Sunday, “but you never know.”

Heyward brought up his 2023 status unsolicited. Pressed on whether he was mulling retirement, Heyward demurred, instead indicating he did not want to assume the Steelers wanted to bring him back to be the team’s second-highest paid player (to T.J. Watt) again.

“It’s the business side of things,” said Heyward, who is halfway through a four-year, $65 million contract extension signed in 2020. “It’s the NFL, (which stands for) ‘Not for long.’

“I want to be back. I would like to be a Pittsburgh Steeler still. But you don’t know what’s going on in the future.”

Heyward has 78 ½ sacks, second in team history to James Harrison’s 80 ½,though teammate T.J. Watt is right on his heels with 77 ½. Sunday’s game also was Heyward’s 183rd with the Steelers, tying him with Deshea Townsend for seventh-most in team history and meaning if Heyward played one more season and appeared in all of the Steelers’ games that he would be the sixth player to reach 200 with the franchise.

“Hey man, you never know if (the organization) wants me back or not,” Heyward said. “I don’t take that for granted.

“I say it (deferring to management) every year.”

#HereWeGo #CLEvsPIT
Photos: @ChazPalla pic.twitter.com/tZksQF5yJE

— Tribune-ReviewSports (@TribSports) January 8, 2023

Truth be told, there are plenty of players whose future with the Steelers are far murkier than Heyward’s.

Eighteen players are set to hit unrestricted free agency, including 10 who can be considered first-team players of various degrees: cornerback Cameron Sutton, safeties Terrell Edmunds and Damontae Kazee, inside linebackers Robert Spillane and Devin Bush, defensive linemen Larry Ogunjobi, Chris Wormley and Tyson Alualu, tight end Zach Gentry and fullback Derek Watt.

Other UFAs include No. 3 quarterback Mason Rudolph, core special-teamers Marcus Allen and Miles Boykin, a former NFL first-round pick in safety Karl Joseph, backup running back Benny Snell, backup outside linebacker Malik Reed and reserve offensive linemen Jesse Davis and Trent Scott.

Watt said after the game the players hadn’t yet discussed how it was their last time competing together as the unit known as the 2022 Steelers.

“Not yet. This is all so fresh,” Watt said. “After this, just need to sit down and kind of understand that we don’t have a game next week.”

The next game (counting preseason) comes in August, and the next meaningful game will be in September. For that matter, the next on-field group practice session won’t come until May.

Will Heyward be there for the spring organized team activities?

“I don’t know how to clarify it,” he said. “I’d like to be back, but you just don’t know. This game is always changing. I am not holding anybody hostage.”

Reporters pressed for clarity.

“Let me just let my body heal, guys,” Heyward said with a jovial tone. “I don’t know. I am tired (right now), guys.”

Given one last shot to commit, Heyward seemed to finally relent.

“You’ll see me in the offseason, yeah.”

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