Steelers Predicted To Make Big Addition Heading Into Training Camp

An NFL expert predicts the Pittsburgh Steelers could make one more big move heading into training camp.

ESPN's Bill Barnwell included the Steelers on his list of 15 predictions for the post-June 1 deadline for NFL deals (ESPN+ subscription required) and predicts Pittsburgh will sign free agent offensive tackle Russell Okung to a one-year, $6.5 million deal.

Okung, a former first-round draft pick, two-time Pro Bowler and Super Bowl champion, missed significant time during the 2019 season after suffering a pulmonary embolism due to blood clots, but started 13 games during the past two seasons.

Okung's most notable success came as a member of the Seattle Seahawks, where he spent his first six NFL seasons as the tackle responsible for protecting franchise quarterback Russell Wilson's blindside.

The veteran offensive lineman would provide some depth in the trenches to a position group that lost veteran starting offensive tackle Alejandro Villanueva to the rival Baltimore Ravens via free agency.

"Pittsburgh let Alejandro Villanueva move on this past season, leaving Chukwuma Okorafor as the favorite to start on the line's most important position," Barnwell writes. "Okorafor started last year at right tackle after Zach Banner went down injured, but Ben Roethlisberger would be staring down one of the least imposing sets of starting tackles in the league on paper without an addition."

Vilanueva, 32, made 90 starts in the past six seasons, which included starting in all 16 games during each of the last five seasons and two Pro Bowl appearances in 2017 and 2018.

Offensive line was a major need for the Steelers this offseason, leading the franchise to use its third round pick on former Illinois guard Kendrick Green and fourth-round pick on former Texas A&M offensive tackle Dan Moore Jr. in the 2021 NFL Draft.

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