Steelers Get Important Update On Alex Highsmith

During the final week of Organized Team Activities (OTAs), the truth was revealed. As Tim Benz noted, photographer Taylor Ollason snapped a picture of Highsmith on the practice field on Monday, showing that he is working and not holding out. Lauten and the Steelers were seemingly right. There was no conspiracy or hold-out caused by Herbig's new deal. It was just a poorly-time illness that made everything look bad. 

The biggest hint to this being the case was how out-of-character it would have been for Highsmith to just rage-quit the team in the middle of the week. He is usually one of the quietest, least controversial players in the entire NFL, let along in Pittsburgh. 

The other side of that argument is the idea that money talks. It could have been a whole plan set up by his agent to have him storm out of the building on Wednesday in an effort to get a massive pay raise. 

Steelers Will Likely Only Have Highsmith Around For One More Year

Herbig's extension does not take effect until 2027, so the Steelers can afford to have all three elite edge rushers on the team. In 2027, however, it's hard to imagine all of them sticking around again. Of course, the former fourth-round pick just got paid, so he's likely going to stay. This becomes a question of which of the starters would end up getting moved to bring in more draft capital: Highsmith, or All-Pro edge rusher TJ Watt.

Meanwhile, trading Highsmith would result in a lot less of a dead cap hit than if Watt got dealt. Once again, money talks, and the Steelers wouldn't want to have a $20 million hit when that could be spent on a quality starter at multiple positions. On top of that, Watt's age would likely result in teams giving Pittsburgh a ton of low-ball offers, especially after possibly his worst NFL season so far in 2025.

Highsmith is still in his prime. He's not too expensive, not too old, and a high-character guy -- beloved by many. He could end up getting traded for at least a Day 2 pick and likely more. Shipping him off to another team wouldn't be an insult, but it does feel like a needed move to help pay players at other positions eventually. A lot of those younger offensive linemen will be looking for massive extensions themselves.