Why the Steelers will part ways with Woodley

The first sign that did not bode well for LaMarr Woodley returning to the Steelers in 2014 is what happened recently when he returned from injury – he wasn’t given his usual position back.

But it doesn’t end there. Woodley’s inability to stay healthy and on the field the past 2 ½ seasons – whether his fault because of poor conditioning of just plain bad luck – makes him unreliable and undependable in the eyes of the Steelers.

And that is not a good thing when you are the second-highest paid player on the team. Not at a time when the Steelers are annually up against the cap and needing to rebuild their team with more than just rookie draft choices.

When Woodley returned two weeks ago after missing three games because of a calf injury, he was moved to right outside linebacker for the first time since he was drafted on the second round in 2007. The reason was because Jason Worilds was playing so well at left outside linebacker, Woodley’s former position.

On the surface, that may appear to be a simple and logical explanation for the switch. But, do you really think the Steelers would have made that kind of switch with any of their other top-paid stars if they considered them to be irreplaceable or a part of their future?

When they left Worilds on the left side and moved Woodley to the right side – a position they have slotted for the future with Jarvis Jones – that was the first step on the path to Woodley’s departure.

But here are the others:

Woodley is scheduled to count nearly $13.6 million against the salary cap next season, the second-highest figure on the team. In 2015, he will count nearly $14.1 million. In the final year of his contract in 2016, the amount drops to $11.99 million.

If the Steelers decided to cut Woodley in the offseason, they would have to eat the remaining three years of his pro-rated signing bonus – $5.59 million in 2014, $5.59 million in 2015 and $2.99 million in 2016, or $14.17 million. That money is known as “dead money” because it is counting against the cap for a player who is no longer with the team. But, one way or another, that money is counting against the cap, even if Woodley remains with the team.

By cutting him, they would save $25.5 million – the amount in salary Woodley is due the next three years.

However, it’s not just about the money.

Woodley’s inability to stay healthy – and his decline in production – began on Oct. 30, 2011, when he pulled a hamstring against the New England Patriots. Prior to the injury, Woodley’s was having an All-Pro season, with nine sacks in eight games.

But, since that injury, Woodley has appeared in just 25 games and has nine sacks. He does not have a game in which he has had more than one sack. Before he was injured against the Patriots, Woodley had 16 games with multiple sacks.

Conversely, in that same time period, Worilds has appeared in 38 games and has 16 sacks, including a team-high eight this season. He has four games in which he has had multiple sacks, including three this season. Worilds’ cap number this year: $985,000.

The Steelers have a big decision to make. Worilds will be an unrestricted free agent after the season and has probably played himself into a nice contract on the open market. If the Steelers want to retain him, they will have to give him a contract that will make it difficult for them to keep Woodley.

Of course, it’s possible the Steelers could do to Woodley what they did to James Harrison – ask him to take a significant pay cut or else. But it’s more than likely, based on his lack of availability and production the past 2 ½ seasons, they will simply part ways with Woodley.

The process has already begun.