Steelers Part Ways With Offensive Starter
C Mason Cole is released by Pit.
On February 23, center Mason Cole was released by head coach Mike Tomlin and the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Starting center Mason Cole has been released by the Pittsburgh Steelers, marking another departure of a veteran player from the team as announced on February 23.
From 2022-23, the individual who will soon be turning 28 commenced a total of 35 games for the Steelers which included playoff matches. With one year left in their agreement, they still had time with the team.
The Steelers were able to free up $3.955 million in salary cap space under the Rule of 51 following his departure, while also assuming some $1.5 million in dead cap money as part of the decision to let him go.
Before the 2022 season, Cole inked a deal with the Steelers worth $15.75 million spanning three years. Previously, he spent his initial four seasons in the NFL playing for both Arizona Cardinals and Minnesota Vikings.
Since the Super Bowl, quarterback Mitch Trubisky, offensive tackle Chukwuma Okorafor and punter Pressley Harvin III have also been released by the Steelers in addition to Cole.
The center Mason Cole has been released by the Steelers.
According to Steelers Depot’s Alex Kozora, Cole was a solid and resilient player who seemed like an excellent asset for the Steelers following the 2022 season.
Nevertheless, his performance declined in 2023.
Cole had the least successful season of his career in the previous year, as indicated by player grades from Pro Football Focus. His performance was notably subpar when it came to pass blocking and garnered him a mere 32.4 grade (out of 100) for pass protection at PFF.
Daniel Valente of X (previously Twitter) reported that Mason Cole had the highest number of pressures among all centers in 2023, including postseason games according to PFF.
“This had become necessary despite the fact that there was already a great need for a center.”
Having been drafted in the third round by the Cardinals in 2018, Cole initiated his career with a successful debut year where he played and started all of the season’s sixteen games as a rookie.
Arizona sent him to Minnesota for a sixth-round pick after he started 32 games with the Cardinals. During his time with the Vikings, he made seven starts and played in 14 games within just one season.
On February 23, it was announced by the NFL that an unprecedented $30 million salary cap increase would take place for the 2024 season. Thus, this new development placed The Steelers in a far superior position regarding their cap situation.
With the addition of Cole’s release, the Steelers’ cap space has exceeded $12 million.
What is the Steelers’ Plan for Replacing Cole?
Due to his lackluster performance during the 2023 season and cost savings, Cole’s departure will be hailed. Nonetheless, The Steelers do not possess a backup center on their team.
Entering free agency, the Steelers will require a new center and might even prioritize this position due to not having any alternative options on their roster.
The Steelers’ decision to release Cole may have signaled to other teams their potential interest in selecting a top center during the 2024 NFL draft.
During this offseason, various mock drafts have linked the Steelers with Jackson Powers-Johnson who plays center for Oregon and Zach Frazier, a West Virginia center.
Kozora stated on X that while they don’t want to be certain, it seems highly probable that the player will make it into at least the top two rounds.
According to Kozora, it would be difficult for the Steelers to not select either Oregon’s Jackson Powers-Johnson or West Virginia’s Zach Frazier in the upcoming draft.
At the 2024 Senior Bowl, Powers-Johnson had a conversation with head coach Mike Tomlin and since then, there have been reports associating him with the Steelers for their No. 20 overall first-round pick.
