**How will the Steelers resolve the contract situations with Cam Heyward and Chris Boswell?**
According to ESPN yesterday, both Cam Heyward and Chris Boswell want the Steelers to pay them more—or more guaranteed. Either way, they want adjustments to their contract, which is an extreme rarity for players in their particular circumstances. Both are in their mid-30s and are under contract through 2026, so not due for an extension.
But there are ways to go about addressing contracts with multiple years left who have substantially outperformed them. In 2015 and 2016, the Steelers forwarded Antonio Brown an additional $2 million before signing him to an extension in 2017 in the final year of his then-current deal. They could do something similar for Heyward and Boswell, forwarding money from 2026 into 2025.
Since signing a four-year, $20 million extension in 2022, Chris Boswell has not only been arguably the NFL’s best kicker, he has also significantly expanded his range. Last season, he made 13 kicks from 50-plus yards, which would have been an NFL record prior to 2024.
As for Cam Heyward, he signed a two-year extension just last year, but not a traditional extension. He was coming off an injury-plagued year, and the Steelers didn’t trust he would bounce back. Of the $29 million he received in new money for 2025 and 2026, none was guaranteed. Only the $16 million he was already due for the 2024 season was guaranteed in his deal.
Now Heyward essentially has a two-year deal worth $14.5 million per season, which for an elite interior defender is spit in the ocean. Likewise, Boswell doesn’t even make the top 10 in salary among kickers, despite being an All-Pro, as Heyward was.
Everybody wants security, and providing players with security is part of doing business in the NFL. While technically the Steelers could choose not to budge and force Cam Heyward and Chris Boswell to play out the season with no new money, these are things the locker room watches.
For some, that signifies precisely why the Steelers need to do right by Heyward and Boswell, elites of their position. For others, it would signify just the opposite. Surely, if the Steelers caved and paid them more money with two years left on their deal, it would open the floodgates for everyone else, right?
Well, it didn’t after they did it for Antonio Brown. Because Antonio Brown is Antonio Brown. And Cam Heyward is Cam Heyward. And Chris Boswell is Chris Boswell. Elite play is a bargaining chip few actually have, no matter whether or not they _think_ they do.
_The Steelers are rebuilding, or reloading, whatever they feel the need to call it, after another disappointment last season. Though they limped into the playoffs, they once again embarrassed themselves therein._
_Just like last year, the biggest question hanging over the Steelers is_ [_the quarterback question_](https://steelersdepot.com/2025/04/schrager-thinkhttps:/steelersdepot.com/2025/06/aaron-rodgers-confirms-he-plans-to-retire-after-2025-nfl-season/)_. While they made a lot of moves, they have to put the pieces together. The_ [_2025 NFL Draft class_](https://www.steelers.com/draft/) _could play a big role, but veteran additions will be paramount._
_But we still have a long training camp ahead for Steelers football. We survived the Aaron Rodgers situation and moved on to other things–other dramas sometimes. Now it’s about evaluating the roster in place and filling holes as we go._