Player: CB James Pierre
Stock Value: Sold
Reasoning: The Steelers have lost a few free agents, and James Pierre may be the most surprising, particularly for the price. After half a decade of yeoman work on special teams, he finally saw an opportunity in 2025. He played well when he took the field on defense, and he followed his former defensive backs coach in free agency.
Even with the solid season James Pierre turned in, you would’ve never convinced me that nearly a third of the league would be interested in him. Then again, I didn’t think teams would pay Kenneth Gainwell $7 million APY after one season of worthwhile production. But this season—like every one before, I imagine—illustrates once again that this is a what-have-you-done-for-me-lately business.
Fortunately for James Pierre, what he has done lately is the best he’s ever done. And his former defensive backs coach, Gerald Alexander, seemed to really like what he did. After Mike Tomlin resigned, Alexander followed Brian Flores to Minnesota’s staff. The Vikings were the high bigger for Pierre, signing him to a two-year, $8.5 million contract.
While it’s not a huge deal, it’s certainly a good chunk of change for Pierre. He earned about $6 million in his first six seasons in the NFL, which certainly isn’t nothing. But he is basically quadrupling is average annual earnings, and I’m sure most of us would like to do that.
James Pierre had 11 passes defensed in his career going into 2025. He finished the season with 11, doubling his career total as a result. While he only intercepted one pass, he was close to a few others. The Steelers actually cut Pierre, initially, though as a procedural move.
They had no intention of playing him on defense. In fact. The Steelers brought in three cornerbacks ahead of him in free agency and via trade, and he barely made the roster for his special teams. At best, he would have been the fifth cornerback off the bench. Even the sixth, if Cory Trice Jr. could ever stay healthy. But James Pierre outlasted everybody, ultimately, and now he has his reward. And the Steelers have Jamel Dean, so it all works out. Dean is actually younger, by the way, and significantly more experienced. But not cheaper.
With the 2025 season behind us and the new league year underway, we still have stock to take. Already promisinga year of change, they are shaking things up. That is unavoidable, of course, when you gut the coaching staff. Mike Tomlin’s resignation will fundamentally change this football team, including the playoffs on the roster.
After a long season, we have finally seen that this Steelers team is playoff-bound. But they also showed that their progress was actually minimal,since they made it no further. Two years in a row, with two different quarterbacks, they went 10-7 and lost in the Wild Card Round. The only differences are they ended the season on a higher note and won the division. But it didn’t help.
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