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Steelers Do Not Tender Three Restricted Free Agents
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- Steelers Do Not Tender Three Restricted Free Agents
The Pittsburgh Steelers did not tender contacts any of their three remaining restricted free agents, allowing them all to become unrestricted free agents.
Center Ryan McCollum , outside linebacker Jeremiah Moon and punter Corliss Waitman were all not offered contracts by the club. Them not being tendered a contract does not mean that they will not return to Pittsburgh, but they are now free to negotiate with other clubs without restrictions.
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To retain their rights as restricted free agents, the Steelers would have had to at least offer them a one-year contract worth $3.52 million.
That tender would only have earned the Steelers the right of first refusal. Restricted free agents who are tendered contracts still have the right to negotiate long-term extensions with other teams, with the tendering club able to match that deal if they choose to.
If the tendering club places a first- or second-round tender on a player, another team would also have to send a corresponding draft pick to Pittsburgh to complete the deal. A first-round tender this year cost $8.046 million and a second-round tender would have set the Steelers back $5.767 million.
None of the team's three RFAs play major roles that were likely to support them being tendered a contract.
Pittsburgh Steelers center Ryan McCollum in a game against the New York Jets on Oct. 21, 2025. — Ed Thompson / Steelers Now
McCollum is the team's backup center. He has made three starts in four seasons with the Steelers, two in 2024 and one last year, all in place of Zach Frazier . McCollum played under a one-year, $1.04 million contract in 2025.
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Moon finished the 2025 season as the Steelers' No. 5 edge rusher. Slotted behind starters T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith and quality backups Nick Herbig and Jack Sawyer , Moon saw minimal playing time. He originally joined the Steelers before the 2024 season. In 2025, he was released and signed by the Carolina Panthers before coming back to Pittsburgh mid-season. In two seasons, he has 128 snaps of defense and has made 11 tackles.
Waitman was the team's starting punter in 2025, beating out Cameron Johnston for the starting job in a training camp battle. But he took a step backward compared to his play in 2024, when he first filled in for Johnston, and the team brought Johnston back for competition in 2026 — at least.
The Steelers had one other restricted free agent, defensive tackle Esezi Otomewo . The Steelers signed him to a one-year contract extension earlier this week, bypassing the tender process.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now : Steelers Do Not Tender Three Restricted Free Agents
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