Cam Heyward Looks Forward to Having Fun with Naysayers

Pittsburgh Steelers defensive captain Cam Heyward will not attend OTAs while he negotiates a new contract extension with the team, according to a report by Jeremy Fowler of ESPN. Heyward explained his rationale for sitting out on Thursday.

“First of all, it’s voluntary. Let’s get that straight. I’m working out, doing everything,” Heyward said on Not Just Football. “I have always attended these, but at this time, it’s just contract negotiations. I want to be a Pittsburgh Steeler, but we’ll see what happens. You got to do what’s right for you. I’m training hard; there’s nothing I’m not doing on and off the field. I’m doing everything possible, and we’ll get there when we get there.”

Heyward, the team’s longtime defensive captain, told Steelers Now last week that he is looking for a contract extension and wants to play two or three more seasons. The 35-year-old is set to enter the final season of his current contract in 2024, and is owed $16 million this coming season.

“We’ve talked about an extension,” Heyward said to Steelers Now at a community event on Saturday. “We’ll see what happens. My goal is to play two to three more years. Mostly three. I’m looking for an opportunity. We’ll see what happens. I’d like it to be here, but my goal is to play. So we’ll see.”

Heyward has not been participating in offseason workout, according to Fowler, and has never missed OTAs for a contract dispute. It’s not clear if Heyward, will be in attendance but not participating, as other Steelers veterans like Minkah Fitzpatrick, Diontae Johnson and T.J. Watt have done over the last few years, or if he plans to skip the sessions entirely. But Heyward says that is just business.

Heyward has received a lot of flak in some circles for not being willing to take a pay cut. Some also think he’s washed up at this point of his career. Heyward sees all of the chatter on social media, and he’s keeping the receipts.

“Just know it’s all screenshotted,” Heyward said with a laugh on his Not Just Football podcast. “Everybody has been having an opinion, and that is just great for me, I tell you that. That is the icing on the cake to all this. And I appreciate you, I love you guys, it’s great you guys all having opinions, and I value them. But I can’t wait to have some fun with this.”

Heyward delivered a few messages to his naysayers on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Friday night.

Heyward is coming off an injury-plagued 2022 season, when he suffered a torn groin and also had surgery for a core muscle injury, also known as a sports hernia. Heyward was expected to miss three months after the Week 1 injury and surgery, but returned eight weeks later, albeit well before he was 100%. Heyward played in 11 games in 2023, recording 33 tackles, six tackles for a loss, three quarterback hits, two sacks and one pass defended.

Until the injuries, the elder statesman of the Pittsburgh defense had shown no signs of slowing down, despite his 194 games of NFL experience. Heyward had earned Pro Bowl nods in six consecutive seasons from 2017-21 and was a four-time Associated Press All-Pro in that span. He set a career high with 89 tackles in 2021, and his 20.5 sacks between 2021-22 were the most he ever had over a two-year span.

The Steelers have very little in terms of contractual value committed beyond the 2024 season. They have $168.3 million committed to 29 players for 2025, with the fifth-most cap space in the NFL, according to Over the Cap.

The Steelers are much tighter to the cap for 2024, and a salary cap hit reduction for Heyward could help general manager Omar Khan in his pursuit of a wide receiver. Heyward has said that he would not take a pay cut in order to help the team’s salary cap.

“I bust my butt in rehab, doing everything,” Heyward said on his podcast in January. “I got to let things calm down. Screw the people who keep talking about me getting a pay cut.”