Steelers' Updated Salary Cap After Ben Roethlisberger's New Contract

Ben Roethlisberger will be back with the Pittsburgh Steelers for the 2021 NFL season, and he'll reportedly take a big pay cut to do so. 

The Steelers announced Thursday they signed a new contract with the six-time Pro Bowler. According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, Roethlisberger's cost against the salary cap will fall by more than $15 million. Ian Rapoport of NFL Network provided additional details:

The 39-year-old was originally due to carry a $41.2 million cap hit, which would've been the largest in the league. Pittsburgh was between a rock and a hard place because it didn't really have a backup plan but couldn't afford to absorb that kind of number with the salary cap itself due to fall compared to 2020.

And for as much as Roethlisberger helped the team, Spotrac still projects the Steelers to be nearly $7.3 million over a $185 million cap. That doesn't reflect his amended contract, either.

General manager Kevin Colbert still has to shed a lot of money with James Conner, JuJu Smith-Schuster, Alejandro Villanueva, JuJu Smith-Schuster and Bud Dupree among the team's notable free agents. Then you have to factor in draft picks and outside reinforcements to capitalize on a window to contend that remains open for as long as Roethlisberger is on the roster.

In a normal season, established veterans can find themselves out of a job because a team needs to create financial flexibility. ESPN's Dianna Russini spoke to an NFL head coach who said to expect a "massacre" in reference to upcoming roster cuts across the NFL.

With Roethlisberger's future sorted, the hard part still lies ahead for Colbert.