'His play fell off': Steelers receive warning about key defensive contributor

The Pittsburgh Steelers have gone through a free agency frenzy, and they have come out with numerous prizes to help improve the roster for 2026. While rumors are currently quiet around the team as it does its Pro Day and Top 30 visits to prepare for the draft, there are more transactions expected to happen, and not just small ones. With 12 draft picks in hand, common sense says that General Manager Omar Khan has no interest in using all 12, which means some draft capital could be sent elsewhere in exchange for key contributors. 

The Steelers were also once rumored to be shopping linebacker Patrick Queen to see what kind of return they could get for him, but that rumor has died down. ESPN's Todd Archer explained why that is the case, and it's not a good sign for Pittsburgh at all.

"Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Patrick Queen had 120 tackles last season, but several scouts said his play fell off last year," Archer noted. "He is due to make $10.83 million in base salary this year."

Khan previously stated that he likes Queen and wants him to stay in Pittsburgh, but what he says and what he means are usually two different things. The Steelers were reportedly deep in negotiations with the Dallas Cowboys to ship the linebacker away, but those talks fell off. They don't seem to be the only ones who are worried about this supposed massive drop in ability on the field. 

If all or most of these reports are true, this is a tough testament to Queen. The Steelers aren't keeping Queen because they want to; they're doing so because his trade value seems to be at its lowest point. Khan was likely looking for a Day 2 pick, while other teams won't budge about something like a fifth-rounder. 

He will stick around for the final year of his deal due to a supposed lack of interest on the trade market. If the Steelers were aggressively trying to trade Queen like these reports make it sound like, then these scouts' takes on the veteran linebacker might be true. 

Khan might know that, which was why he was trying to trade him away before his value sank. It was too late, and the other teams were not willing to take the risk that he would bounce back to old form with a change of scenery in exchange for a quality draft pick. 

Queen himself had a very up-and-down season. There were some games where he looked completely lost out there, and others where it looked like he went back to his peak form from his time with the Baltimore Ravens. He didn't seem outright horrible overall, but his performance did leave more to be desired. Clearly, Pittsburgh thought the same if it was trying to trade him to Dallas before his contract expired. 

Steelers are better off keeping Queen than receiving a Day 3 pick for him

No matter how he played in 2025, Queen is still the defensive quarterback and the primary three-down linebacker. He knows all the signals, and that will be key for a team running with a new defensive staff, even though most of the terminology and signals will likely be the same. He and Defensive Coordinator Patrick Graham will have to work together to get everyone on the same page. 

Queen's issues may have stemmed from Mike Tomlin's overly complicated schematics, and Graham is known for being more adaptable and willing to work with what his players are good at. The hope is that with a new play-caller who can and will simplify the defense, everyone will be able to take a step up and improve from a disappointing 2025 campaign. Keeping Queen around for that is better than trading him for pennies.