Steelers continue to lose in free agency with Mike Hilton heading to Bengals

The Pittsburgh Steelers offseason could not get worse with star slot corner Mike Hilton heading to their AFC rival.

It was a given that the Pittsburgh Steelers were set to regress after the 2020 season. Ben Roethlisberger threw for a career-worst 6.3 yards per play and the offense couldn’t get the ball rolling after their 11-0 start.

It was the defense that did most of the heavy lifting last season. Now, Pittsburgh will lose a critical piece of that secondary.

Former Steeler slot cornerback Mike Hilton has agreed to terms with the Cincinnati Bengals according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. The final terms of the deal have yet to be announced.

Perhaps the most underrated player in the NFL today, Hilton thrived the last three seasons as the Steelers mean nickel defender. He’s been affected as a blitzer and shine in coverage against slot receivers.

For his career, Hilton has recorded 236 tackles, 32 pass deflections, 23 quarterback hits, 9.5 sacks, and seven interceptions.

 A win for the Bengals and lost for the Steelers?

After struggling in both the pass rush and coverage department, Cincinnati was destined to make a few moves to upgrade both spots.

On Monday, the Bengals agreed to terms with former Saints’ pass-rusher Trey Hendrickson on a four-year deal worth up to $60 million. Earlier Tuesday, they added former Cowboys corner Chidobe Awuzie.

The Steelers now have already seen a multitude of players leave in free agency. Hilton seen destined to head elsewhere after the team agreed to a two year deal with fellow nickel defender Cam Sutton. The Steel City also lost outside linebacker Bud Dupree to the Titans and Matt Feiler to the Chargers.

Pittsburgh is also expected to part ways with wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster and running back James Connor.

The Steelers will return next season with Ben Roethlisberger under center. The problem there is that his protection is now limited and attention must turn to fixing the trenches in the draft. By doing that, they won’t be able to fix several defensive needs for their future.

Pittsburgh’s one shimmering hope to win the AFC in 2021 is the fact that they have a veteran quarterback. He statistically coming off a sup-par season and is losing a key member of his passing attack plus up to three offensive lineman.

Worst of all? Hilton will remain in the AFC North, meaning Pittsburgh is set to face the superstar twice a year.