Stephon Tuitt's future remains one of the Steelers' biggest questions heading into 2022

Steelers coach Mike Tomlin’s season-ending news conferences often go the way this year’s did, especially when the franchise’s season ends before the NFL playoffs or after the first round.

That has now happened five years in a row — a first since the end of the 1971 season.

The shorter the playoff run, the more time before offseason business begins for the entire league. So the more nebulous and open-ended Tomlin’s answers tend to be.

Some nuggets were available Tuesday, and Tomlin left a few breadcrumbs about organizational plans.

• “All options are on the table” when it comes to adding to the quarterback room, Tomlin said.

• Tomlin didn’t say for certain whether defensive coordinator Keith Butler is retiring but said it has been discussed.

• Tomlin didn’t confirm potential retirement talk by general manager Kevin Colbert, either, but he answered questions without dismissing the potential of Colbert stepping down.

• Tomlin sounded as if the immediate plan is to retain offensive coordinator Matt Canada, saying, “I’m optimistic about Matt (Canada) and what he is capable of doing.”

• In regard to Kendrick Green, Tomlin acknowledged that J.C. Hassenauer passed the rookie as the starting center and that Green has the position flexibility to play guard, but he said they would not yet “put to bed” the notion of Green fulfilling the original plan of being a center.

But there is one mystery that hung over the Steelers all season that remained thoroughly unclear by the time Tomlin finished speaking Tuesday: Will defensive end Stephon Tuitt ever play again in Pittsburgh?

That question was asked repeatedly throughout the season, and Tuitt never got into a game. Now the team needs to figure out whether he should be in their 2022 plans.

Two things were known to have played a role in Tuitt’s lost season. He had a knee issue that Butler discussed when Tuitt went on injured reserve in September. Tuitt also lost his brother, 23-year-old Richard Bartlett III, during the 2021 offseason. Bartlett was killed during a hit-and-run incident in Georgia in June. Butler said Tuitt was helping his mother grieve the loss of her son.

“To tell you the truth, I don’t know how I’d handle my mom watching her son die,” Butler said at the time. “I don’t know if I could handle that. So I’m not sure what to tell you, other than that his knee is bothering him a little bit and he might be a little bit overweight and what he’s doing with his mother.”

That was pretty much the most in-depth explanation anyone gave about Tuitt’s status. The 28-year-old hasn’t spoken publicly about his situation or posted on social media since announcing his brother died.

All Tomlin offered is that he hasn’t spoken with Tuitt or defensive lineman Tyson Alualu yet as part of exit interviews. Alualu was also lost for much of the season after suffering an ankle fracture in Week 2.

Alualu is on the 2022 payroll for $3.4 million ($962,500 dead cap charge). Tuitt is projected to make $13.9 million against the cap next year — the third-highest number on the team. He has voidable years through 2025 and a cap charge of $4.75 million in 2023.

The absence of both was crushing for the Steelers defense. The unit allowed 146.1 rushing yards per game, the most in the NFL. The Steelers were 11th in that category at 111.4 yards per game in 2020.

In terms of sacks, aside from Cameron Heyward’s 10, Chris Wormley helped out with seven. Henry Mondeaux added two and Isaiahh Loudermilk had one. That was it from the position. Tuitt had 11 in 2020.

Alualu seems like a simple answer. Unless we don’t know something about the healing process of that ankle, keep him. He was a solid retention in free agency last year and looked good in training camp and the first few weeks of the season. He can still be the starting nose tackle and a backup to Heyward and Tuitt at defensive end.

Tuitt’s situation is more complex because of the unknown nature of his absence and his cost against the cap. The sensitive and expeditious public explanation of his absence has simply been to say, “It’s none of our business. He needs time away for whatever reasons. For his knee. To mourn. Both. To heal his leg and/or his mental well-being.”

And that’s fine on the outside. If the franchise and the player don’t want to disclose anything, that’s their business.

However, from the organization’s point of view, it’s going to have to do something publicly in the next few months. They are going to have to draft or sign a player at Tuitt’s position because what they have there isn’t enough — even if Alualu is back playing in 2022.

Not to mention what will have to be done with Tuitt’s cap figure. Barring some sort of cap massaging, Tuitt is slated to cost $13.9 million to keep. If the Steelers cut him before June 1, it will cost them $9.6 million in dead cap money but save them $4.3 million against cap. If they cut him after June 1, it would cost them $4.9 million in dead cap money but save them $9 million against the cap.

If the plan is to keep Tuitt for next season, and the fan base and media are kept in the dark, so be it. We’ll have to figure things out on our own.

Tuitt has every right to grieve as long as he needs. But the Steelers have every right to do what’s best for their roster. They can’t go through another year of what they had — or, better said, didn’t have — this season along the defensive line.

The Steelers certainly can prioritize other needs first, like determining the quarterback position and rebuilding the offensive line. Unfortunately, Tuitt currently counts as 6.5% of their payroll next year. So coming up with a defensive line depth chart has to be next on that list.

Tomlin and the front office have to be definitive. They must have a plan, and Tuitt has to share his own path with them at some point.

That’s not cold or unfeeling. That’s just reality. A reality that, at this point, remains completely unclear.

As so much else is with the Steelers in 2022.

Listen: Joe Rutter and Tim Benz discuss the important topics from Mike Tomlin’s final news conference of 2021. Most notably, the futures of Kevin Colbert, both coordinators, the quarterback position and Stephon Tuitt.