Pittsburgh Steelers Free Agency: Will Allen to sign with Cowboys
By Matt Shetler
The Pittsburgh Steelers have apparently lost another one of their unrestricted free agents.
With only $2.5 million of cap room, signings will be far and few between the rest of the season, which is a larger reason that backup safety Will Allen appears to be heading to the Dallas Cowboys, according to NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport.
Nov 4, 2012; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers strong safety Will Allen (26) prior to the game against the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim O
Allen turned out to be a valuable part of the Steelers secondary last season, outplaying former backup Ryan Mundy, who is also gone, having signed with the New York Giants.
In nine seasons, Allen has 33 starts between the Steelers and Buccaneers. His best season came in 2006 with Tampa Bay, when he compiled 77 tackles and started all 16 games. Seven of those starts came last season.
Allen proved valuable as he could fill in for both Troy Polamalu and Ryan Clark if needed.
With both Mundy and Allen now gone, there is a good chance that the Steelers may have to look at the safety spot in the upcoming draft as there is no depth at the position currently on the roster.
Add to that the fact that Polamalu unfortunately can’t be counted on to play 16 games and it is a position of need.
The Steelers have been linked to Texas safety Kenny Vaccaro, but there is a chance that he could be gone before the Steelers pick at No. 17.