3 teams that should sign Allen Robinson next offseason
By John Buhler
Allen Robinson will play one more year with the Chicago Bears before testing free agency.
Chicago Bears wide receiver Allen Robinson is one of only a handful of players who will play out the 2021 NFL season on the dreaded franchise tag.
Robinson will make $17.88 million on his one-year deal with the Bears. In his seven-year career out of Penn State, Robinson has amassed 457 catches for 5,999 receiving yards and 39 touchdowns. While he has yet to match his brilliant 2015 season with the Jacksonville Jaguars, Robinson has put up back-to-back 1,000-yard receiving seasons while in a Chicago uniform.
Since he is not expected to return to the Bears for a fifth season in 2022, let’s take a look at some of the teams who are in the best position to acquire him in free agency next March.
Allen Robinson: 3 teams who should pursue him in 2022 NFL free agency
Pittsburgh Steelers. Scouting Report. Pick Analysis. 3. player. 55. AFC. North
The Pittsburgh Steelers will be ushering in a new era under center at quarterback
Things will look different for the Pittsburgh Steelers in two years. 2021 is expected to be future first-ballot Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback Ben Roethlisberger’s last year in the league. Once he retires, Pittsburgh will face great uncertainty at the quarterback position. One guy who has succeeded everywhere he has been without great quarterback play happens to be Robinson.
Given that Robinson is a former Penn State standout, he would already have a baked-in fanbase should he join the Steelers in his free agency. No organization has done a better job historically of getting the most out of its wide receivers than Pittsburgh. Because they have drafted well at the position group, the Steelers have three solid wide receivers on team-friendly contracts in 2022.
Despite already having Chase Claypool, JuJu Smith-Schuster and Diontae Johnson under contract for 2022, Pittsburgh has the third-best salary cap situation ahead of that particular season. The Steelers have 45 players on the books with over $76.4 million in available space. Pittsburgh can afford to pay a premium on Robinson in his free agency, but quarterbacking instability is a concern.
Not knowing who will be starting under center for Pittsburgh in 2022 hurts the Steelers’ chances.