From time to time over the past several months, the Steelers deftly have tried to get the word out through the media that cornerback Ike Taylor will be staying in Pittsburgh. We’ve been told that Taylor plans to instead test the market once free agency opens, and Taylor himself later said he won’t give the Steelers a hometown discount.
Since the Steelers rarely getting into bidding wars for free agents, especially then those free agents most recently played for the Steelers, Taylor seems to be resigned to the fact that his next contract will come from another team.
“I’ve been [in Pittsburgh] for eight years,” Taylor told Hunter Paniagua of the New Orleans Times-Picayune, via NFL.com, from Taylor’s annual “Face Me Ike” football camp in Gretna, Louisiana. “I’ve been in that city more than any other city in my whole life, but time will tell. I see myself being anywhere I need to be. Wherever you put me, I’m going to make home.”
With Champ Bailey re-signed by the Broncos and only a few big names hitting the market at the cornerback position (Nnamdi Asomugha and Antonio Cromartie) and plenty of team having to spend plenty of money to comply with the expected minimum cash requirements of the salary cap, Taylor could be in high demand. But he says he’s not thinking about how it will all shake out.
“I just leave it up to my agent and Pittsburgh,” Taylor said. “When it comes down to getting serious, I’m sure my agent is going to call me. Other than that, he’ll let me know when the time is right.”
Given that the time can’t even begin to be right until the lockout is over, here’s hoping that the right time is coming soon.
source: PFT.com
author: Mike Florio
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