Steelers release former Pro Bowl safety in salary cap clearing move

With NFL free agency almost here, teams are making moves to clear up some cap space. The Pittsburgh Steelers made another move in that capacity by releasing safety Keanu Neal, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.

‘Steelers announced they released S Keanu Neal with the designation of Failed Physical.’

The Steelers are clearing $2.25M in cap space by releasing Neal and are expected to be active in free agency all around. Neal was only with Pittsburgh for one season and he played in nine games with eight starts, registering 50 tackles and an interception.

Neal was placed on Injured Reserve in November due to a rib injury and he never was able to return to the field.

Neal’s best years came with the Atlanta Falcons, whom he spent time with from 2016 until 2020 after being drafted 17th overall in the 2016 NFL Draft. Neal was named a Pro Bowler in the 2017 season.

After leaving Atlanta, he spent a year with the Dallas Cowboys and Tampa Bay Buccaneers and now enters free agency once again in a suddenly loaded safety class. The safety market includes Denver Broncos safety Justin Simmons, who was surprisingly released on Thursday, as well as Xavier McKinney, Jamal Adams, Quandre Diggs, and more. With Neal out the door, Pittsburgh will be in the market for some more secondary help this season.

The Steelers have commonly been linked to Russell Wilson as a quarterback option in free agency, so things could look a lot different for Pittsburgh when the season begins.