The Pittsburgh Steelers have started to work with quarterback Ben Roethlisberger on restructuring his contract to try and give the team more cap flexibility heading into next season.
According to ESPN.com writer Ed Werder, sources said that the team is currently in negotiations with Roethlisberger and it is expected that the deal will be worked out by the end of the week. No details were available about what will change in the deal, but the Steelers are hoping to try and lower the quarterback's salary cap figure to help the team next season, something the team and Roethlisberger have done in the past.
The team has 10 players that will count for about $100 million against the cap, including Roethlisberger and linebacker Lawrence Timmons, who will also have his contract worked on, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
The Steelers need to get under the salary cap by the NFL deadline on March 12 and the move marks the third straight season that Roethlisberger has worked with the team on restructuring his deal. The report said that his new contract will not change any of the money or length of the deal, but will provide immediate cap relief for the Steelers.
Werder reports that the Steelers could save nearly $10 million in cap space after reworking the deals, which would help with the team as they are estimated to be $14 million over the salary cap when the league ear begins. Roethlisberger will make over $11 million next season, but the cap number will be lowered with the new deal.
The Steelers are taking the same route the New England Patriots and quarterback Tom Brady did this week when the team reworked his deal to save money for the cap. The team transferred money into guaranteed dollars and added three years and $27 million to his contract, keeping Brady with the team until 2017.
The two deals for the quarterbacks come just as Baltimore Ravens Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco is working on a new contract with the team as a free agent. Flacco is looking to become one of the highest paid quarterbacks, while both Brady and Roethlisberger are lowering their salary numbers to take them out of the top five highest paid throwers in the NFL.
Brady's deal lowered the exclusive-rights franchise quarterback number that Flacco could be tagged with if a deal is not worked out, with Brady bringing it down by nearly $800,000, according to ESPN.com.
