Stewart likely to be with new team next season
PITTSBURGH (AP) – Tommy Maddox held an end-of-the-season chat Monday with the man he succeeded as the Pittsburgh Steelers’ quarterback, Kordell Stewart. It almost seemed as if both were saying goodbye. Stewart, the starter for most of the previous five seasons, is expected to be traded or released during the off-season. Stewart’s salary cap value would be $7.9 million next season, far too much for any team to pay for a backup quarterback.
“Kordell and I talked, and I’m hoping the best for him and he’s hoping the best for me,” Maddox said. “All those things will work out for the best.”
With Maddox now locked into the starter’s job, the Steelers may try to re-sign former Lions starter Charlie Batch to be Maddox’s backup. Batch did not play a down this season as the Steelers’ No. 3 quarterback, making $450,000.
Team owner Dan Rooney declined to comment on the Stewart situation, saying it was much too soon after Saturday’s 34-31 playoff loss to Tennessee to speculate.
However, Stewart seems eager to move on next season to a team that will offer him the chance to start. He was voted as the Steelers’ MVP after leading them to a 13-3 regular season record and the AFC championship game last season, but was benched only three games into this season.
Stewart anticipates a move, but said he must be patient and let the situation play out over the next few months.
“I’m a starter and I want to be a starter, that’s the key,” Stewart said Monday. “Obviously, that’s not here.”
At least two Steelers starters almost certainly won’t be back: left tackle Wayne Gandy and defensive co-captain Lee Flowers, the strong safety. They were among the few veteran starters who weren’t re-signed before this season, and there has been no talk about giving them new deals.
Flowers struggled often in pass coverage as the Steelers’ defense, the NFL’s best last season, allowed opponents to score 30 or more points eight times. The Steelers also gave up 1,103 yards passing in their final three games, believed to be the most in any three-game stretch in franchise history.
The Steelers will likely sign or draft a defensive back, although the market for safeties appears to be much stronger than that for cornerbacks. And, with a low first-round draft pick, the Steelers aren’t likely to get a premium college defensive back.
While Stewart’s departure would free up money under the salary cap, Maddox isn’t certain if he is in line for a pay raise, despite being the league’s lowest-paid starting quarterback.
Maddox, in a move designed to make it difficult for the Steelers to cut him for financial reasons, signed a renegotiated contract last year that paid him slightly less money than his previous contract.
Maddox is due to make $650,000 in 2003, plus an additional $75,000 in roster and workout bonuses.
He made $527,160 this season, or less than third-string running back Chris Fuamatu-Ma’afala ($655,120), who carried only 25 times all season.
“I haven’t thought about it, worried about it and nobody’s talked about it,” Maddox said of a possible contract renegotiation.
“That’s something my agent probably will bring up; I won’t bring it up, and if it happens, it happens.”