Fittipaldo: Steelers Cutting Allen Robinson Would Be The Obvious Move

The Pittsburgh Steelers have already started off their offseason by cutting three players from their roster, saving about $13 million in cap space. There are still many moves to be made, as the team is still over the cap by roughly $3 million. There are plenty of options for restructures, extensions, and other cap casualties to put the Mike Tomlin and co. in position to fix their needs throughout the offseason. With all these options, there is one move that is expected to be announced any day now. 

During his live Q&A chat, Ray Fittipaldo was asked about who would end up being released after the Steelers' big wave of cuts. It did not take any time for Fittipaldo to come up with his answer, and Steeler Nation is expecting it to happen as well.

"[Wide Receiver] Allen Robinson is a no-brainer [to be cut]."

Allen Robinson II seemed like an obvious cap casualty candidate from the moment the Steelers traded for him in the first place. He was brought in to bring veteran leadership to a very young unit, but he was only brought in at all because the Los Angeles Rams ate nearly all of his cap hit for 2023. The Steelers then restructured Robinson's contract to free up more money in both 2023 and 2024. 

Robinson started every game for the Steelers in 2023, but he had a minimal effect. He averaged two receptions per game, as he caught 34 passes for 280 yards, despite playing 72% of offensive snaps for the team. He also had two receptions for just 12 yards in the Steelers' playoff loss to the Buffalo Bills. 

Even with all that, the trade wasn't bad at all. The Steelers only dropped 17 spots in the seventh round, and he cost next-to-nothing in cap space due to the trade. They took a flyer on a veteran to see what all he could do on and off the field. His veteran presence, as well as his connections with Mitch Trubisky, were most likely the main reasons that the Steelers specifically targeted him for the trade. Trubisky is now gone, and Robinson is expected to go sooner rather than later.

Steelers' Cap Situation Once Robinson Is Released

Cutting Robinson would save $10 million in cap space for the Steelers, which would put them back in the green immediately. He would carry a dead cap of roughly $1.9 million, which came from the restructured deal in 2023. That would most likely be enough to sign all of their draft picks, but they will still need more to sign free agents and have some money left over for the regular season, just in case they need it for in-season moves.

There is still plenty of work to be done once Robinson is released. In his same chat, Fittipaldo also mentioned that Patrick Peterson will most likely be a cap casualty, which would free up $6.85 million. In a previous chat, he mentioned that Cameron Heyward would have to take some sort of restructured deal to stay in Pittsburgh, despite his own ideas of how everything should be handled. Those two moves would free up enough cap for the Steelers to make some much-needed acquisitions via free agency or trade.