Steelers’ ‘unsung hero’ leaves final spring workout without a contract
PITTSBURGH – One by one, the Pittsburgh Steelers are signing the key veterans who are heading into the final years of their contracts. But perhaps the most valuable member of that group, Aaron Smith, voted the team’s Unsung Hero, left the final spring workout Thursday without a contract in hand. Smith read Thursday morning that running back Amos Zereoue had agreed to a four-year, $8.8 million deal, which includes a signing bonus of $2.15 million. Smith felt happy for his teammate, but the defensive end was left feeling a little, well, unsung.
“I would like to get my contract done, too,” he said. “You kind of watch all this money and you wonder if they’re going to have anything left.”
Smith, left tackle Wayne Gandy, 31 and strong safety Lee Flowers, 29, are the only starters who haven’t reached an agreement for the 2003 season. But Smith, 26, is the only one of the three players entering his prime athletic years. The other differentiation is that Smith isn’t actually under contract for this season. He opted not to sign the $1.227 million tender offered him as a restricted free agent in March.
“It’s just for leverage,” Smith said, hinting at a camp holdout that he believes will be avoided.
“We’re not that far away,” he said, agreeing with a Steelers official’s assessment that the contract will be done within a week.
It’s expected that Smith will eventually agree to terms close to those agreed upon by Pro Bowl guard Alan Faneca earlier in the week. The $6 million signing bonus would be considerably lower than the Michael Strahan-type of numbers with which Smith and his agent opened negotiations.
“Everybody plays them games, man,” Smith said. “That’s just how the system works. I mean, I know I ain’t going to get Strahan-type money. What did he have, 21 and a half sacks last year?
“To be honest with you, if I didn’t have a wife and a daughter, this contract thing would’ve been done a while ago. But it’s not just me anymore. I’ve other people to worry about. My wife’s got to be satisfied and she’s got to take the chance that she might have to move someplace else, a place she might not like, and she likes it here. There are a lot of other factors that go into it other than just playing football.”
Smith’s primary concern is his first child, 11-week-old Elliana.
“The nice thing is, I go home and my daughter doesn’t care if I played a bad 3 technique, a bad 5 technique, whether I got knocked on my butt all day. She doesn’t care about any of that. She’s just happy I’m home. That’s a great feeling.”
Smith didn’t get knocked down very often last year. In his third year out of Northern Colorado, Smith started every game at left defensive end and had a career-high eight sacks. He sees an even better season on the horizon.
“I feel great,” he said. “I feel better just because I’m more comfortable. Even though it’s only one year to the next, you just get more confidence and you get more comfortable. You understand stuff a little more every year. I’m looking to have a good year.
“There ain’t no doubt about how hungry I am. I want to do something. I don’t want to just come in here and be a flash in the pan. I want to do something. Priority No. 1 is to win games, but I want to do some stuff too, you know. I want to maybe get to the Pro Bowl maybe some day. I’m not just satisfied playing in the NFL. I think as soon as you get satisfied, you’ll soon be out of a job.”
It appears, though, that Smith is counting his new riches a little early. For the first time since he came to Pittsburgh, Smith was sporting a brand new University of Northern Colorado ballcap.
“Yeah, but I still wear the old one,” he said. “My father-in-law gave me the new one for Christmas. He saw that I always wear the same old dirty hat, so he sent me this one. Don’t worry, I’ll wear the old one at camp. It’s my lucky hat.”