Steelers Find Out Exact Price Omar Khan Must Spend To Keep Keeanu Benton In Pittsburgh

The Pittsburgh Steelers had very high hopes whenever they selected Keeanu Benton in the second round with their 49th pick in the 2023 NFL Draft. That draft is pretty significant when looking back on it, as it was Omar Khan’s first draft calling the shots as the GM in Pittsburgh. It turns out that his first-round pick, offensive tackle Broderick Jones, that he traded up to land, did not see his fifth year contract picked up. However, fourth-round pick Nick Herbig and third-round pick tight end Darnell Washington from that draft landed large-sum extensions for two players that are still technically backups on this Mike McCarthy roster.

Many Steelers insiders fully expect rising star cornerback Joey Porter Jr. to command a massive extension roughly around $25 million per year. Herbig and Washington both just got paid tons of money, and that made many just assume Benton would be the odd man out. After all, there’s only so much money to go around, but now a new perspective has been echoed by Steelers insider Nick Farabaugh.

While speaking on 93.7 The Fan, Farabaugh revealed that he expects Porter and also Benton to land huge extensions. Porter comes as no surprise, but Benton is far more stunning. Farabaugh made some excellent points as he looked at the market for other defensive tackles, and he believes Benton will get roughly $16–$18 million per year. When he said that on the show, the co-hosts went crazy, acting stunned by what Farabaugh had said.

"So I think they are going to have a real shot at getting all four of them done," Farabaugh said while speaking on 93.7 The Fan on Friday afternoon. "I think Benton is a tough one, though, because Benton is going to switch to a new role this year, where I think he can get more sack production. Some of these contracts for these defensive tackles, I mean, Milton Williams got like $25 million per year with a season high of like 4.5 sacks. Benton already had 5.5 sacks in a season. He doesn't have the run defense necessary to go with that, which will suppress his market, but these interior pass rushers are becoming more and more valuable than ever."

The very first thing to look at when determining the sheer market value of a potential player is finding players similar to his playstyle and what kind of recent deals those players have signed. 

That is a very obvious notion, but it still remains the best way to navigate the complexities of the ever-changing NFL market.

"He has that skillset, and so that naturally is going to get him a very high floor on this contract," Farabaugh said. "I think they can get it done somewhere between $16-18 million, which is probably where he is going to land this offseason. That's a lot of money, but, you know, Tershawn Wharton got around that, and Benton is a better player than Tershawn Wharton."

Steelers Expected To Continue Recent Trend Of Investing In Youth Under Khan

Despite not being a strong run defender, Farabaugh believes his presence and versatility as an interior lineman will help him big time. 

Whether he gets that or not remains to be seen, but if he does, then it will show a massive commitment from Khan and McCarthy’s end to really be prepared for the future.

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