Pittsburgh Steelers allowing Steven Nelson to look for a trade

The Pittsburgh Steelers brought back JuJu Smith-Schuster on Friday, but are allowing corner Steven Nelson to seek a trade.

Heading into the last year of his deal with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Steven Nelson could be searching for the escape hatch.

On Friday, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported the Steelers are allowing the veteran standout to seek a trade. Nelson, 28, spent the first four seasons of his career with the Kansas City Chiefs after being a third-round pick in the 2015 Draft out of Oregon State. Afterwards, he signed a three-year pact with Pittsburgh and has done well, but now could be moving on.

The Steelers are likely looking to get a bit younger and cheaper, something we’ve seen in free agency to this point. While the team is bringing back wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster on a one-year, $8 million deal, they’ve lost a litany of others talents over the past week including defensive lineman Tyson Alualu, cornerback Mike Hilton, guard Matt Feiler and others.

Should Nelson find a trade that works for all parties, expect it to bring back a Day 3 pick. With only one year left on his deal, Nelson would either be coming to a new team looking for an immediate extension, or would be trying to play out his deal before hitting the market in 2022 when the cap explodes due to the new television deal.

If a trade is going to materialize, expect it to happen in the next month with the start of the 2021 NFL Draft coming on April 29th.