Steelers nose tackle Javon Hargrave is on the move. And he doesn't even have to change the Pa. on his driver's license.
Hargrave agreed to a three-year, $39-million contract with the Eagles on Monday that includes $26 million in guaranteed money.
Former Steelers’ NT Javon Hargrave reached agreement with the Eagles on a three-year, $39m deal with $26M fully guaranteed, @RosenhausSports tells ESPN. Hargrave becomes the highest paid nose tackle in the NFL.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 17, 2020
The move was not unexpected. The Steelers placed the franchise tag on outside linebacker Bud Dupree earlier in the day, pushing them over the 2020 salary cap. They made a number of moves later in the day to get back to the cap -- which all teams must be under by 4 p.m. Wednesday -- but did not have the money to pay Hargrave.
The deal for Hargrave shows the Eagles view the four-year starter at nose tackle as a player capable of being an every down pass rushing defensive tackle. The Eagles play a 4-3 base defense. Hargrave will line up next to All-Pro Fletcher Cox in Philadelphia's defense to form a formidable inside duo.
Playing roughly half of the defensive snaps combined the past two seasons, Hargrave recorded 10.5 sacks, a total that ranked in the top 10 among interior defensive linemen in the NFL.
The 27-year-old was a 2016 third-round draft pick out of South Carolina State, where he set sack records. He became an immediate starter at nose tackle in Pittsburgh, appearing in 63 of a possible 64 games with 52 starts.
But the Steelers viewed him as expendable in their system, which requires a nose tackle on the field for less than 50 percent of the plays. Hargrave did play more, however, in 2019 with defensive end Stephon Tuitt out for the second half of the season because of injury.
His loss means the Steelers are in the market for a new nose tackle. The only other true nose tackle on the roster is little-used backup Daniel McCullers, though veteran Tyson Alualu also can line up at nose tackle in a pinch.
Hargrave is the first of the Steelers' unrestricted free agents to sign elsewhere. The two players selected by the Steelers ahead of him in the 2016 draft, corner Artie Burns and safety Sean Davis, also are unrestricted free agents who are expected to sign elsewhere.
One bright spot for the Steelers from Hargrave's departure is that his deal with definitely help the team when it comes time for the NFL to hand out compensatory picks in 2021.
Given the Steelers' limited cap space, it's unlikely the team will sign anyone who will offset the $13-million average per year of the deal Hargrave signed.
The Steelers received a third-round compensatory pick from the NFL this year for the loss of running back Le'Veon Bell, who received a deal in the same range from the Jets a year ago.
