{"id":109419,"date":"2026-02-09T21:20:47","date_gmt":"2026-02-09T21:20:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/109419\/"},"modified":"2026-02-09T21:20:47","modified_gmt":"2026-02-09T21:20:47","slug":"calvin-austin-iii-discusses-future-in-pittsburgh-they-may-not-want-me","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/109419\/","title":{"rendered":"Calvin Austin III Discusses Future In Pittsburgh: ‘They May Not Want Me’"},"content":{"rendered":"

Change is inevitable during the NFL offseason, but it\u2019s magnified when an entire coaching staff turns over. For the Pittsburgh Steelers, that uncertainty is only heightened with 28 free agents set to hit the open market<\/a> in March. That reality could have a significant impact on WR Calvin Austin III\u2019s future as he prepares for his first free agency.<\/p>\n

\u201cPittsburgh, just being real, they may not want me, or they may have a different vision. And that\u2019s why I say at the end of the day, it\u2019s just a straight business decision,\u201d Austin said Monday via 92.9FM ESPN\u2019s J&J Show<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Players typically go through exit meetings to gain clarity about their future, but with Mike Tomlin stepping down, that process offered little direction. The organization itself was still sorting through what came next.<\/p>\n

\u201cObviously Coach T. did step down. Whether I stay or leave, it\u2019s gonna be a new situation regardless,\u201d Austin said. \u201cEven if I stay, we have a whole new staff so it\u2019s definitely something I\u2019m excited about and been praying over.\u201d<\/p>\n

After losing his rookie season to a foot injury, Austin had carved out a significant role in the offense by Year 3. He was primed to break out in 2025, but a variety of factors prevented that from happening, including another injury that cost Austin three games.<\/p>\n

He now has the opportunity to decide if his lack of a breakout was due to circumstances in Pittsburgh, or if his career is reaching a plateau entering Year 5. As he noted, he will be working with an entirely new coaching staff no matter where he goes.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne thing is for sure: I love Pittsburgh\u2014the fans, the people, the city\u2014I truly love it,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd so I would definitely want to continue to make that home.\u201d<\/p>\n

Most first-time free agents go through a similar thought process about the possibilities. They may have several different voices advising them to do different things. Their agent is always going to look for the best contract, while it may be advantageous for Austin to sign a one-year deal somewhere with a high-powered offense to prove himself as a launching pad for a much larger contract a year later.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt first, I was a little bit like, \u2018Oh, it\u2019s free, you\u2019re a free agent. You\u2019re not assigned to a team.\u2019 So it can kind of be overwhelming if you allow it,\u201d he said. \u201cThis is a blessing wherever I go or whatever happens. I\u2019m definitely excited about it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Other than some of his Steelers teammates, many of his previous ties to the team were severed when nearly the entire coaching staff was let go following Tomlin\u2019s resignation. Even some of his closer friends on the team, like fellow Memphis alum Kenneth Gainwell, are in the same boat as pending free agents. All of this will be taken into account when Austin makes his decision next month.<\/p>\n

Another large factor is what happens with Aaron Rodgers. He and Austin were just starting to click together at the end of the regular season before the Wild Card Round brought an abrupt end. And while it seems like Rodgers is trending toward coming back<\/a>, his decision remains up in the air.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like that plays a factor,\u201d Austin said of Rodgers\u2019 uncertain future. \u201cEverything\u2019s gonna play a factor. I have to think about everything. You don\u2019t wanna make decisions and be like, \u2018Man, yeah, I really didn\u2019t consider that.’\u201d<\/p>\n

If the Steelers draft a receiver in the first round as many expect and also sign a veteran in free agency to supplement the room, Austin could quickly find himself as a rotational WR3 or WR4 on the depth chart. And if Rodgers isn\u2019t back, he could be committing the next two or three years of his life to a team with no clear plan at quarterback. Most players only get a couple shots at free agency. He can\u2019t afford to make the wrong decision and potentially derail his career.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Change is inevitable during the NFL offseason, but it\u2019s magnified when an entire coaching staff turns over. For…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":109420,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[3277,52456,73,75,74,1833],"class_list":["post-109419","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-pittsburgh","tag-calvin-austin-iii","tag-espn-92-9fm","tag-pittsburgh","tag-pittsburgh-headlines","tag-pittsburgh-news","tag-pittsburgh-steelers"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/109419","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=109419"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/109419\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/109420"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=109419"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=109419"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=109419"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}