The Pittsburgh Steelers announced Thursday that they had sacked six-time Pro Bowl guard David DeCastro.
DeCastro was released with a non-soccer injury designation.
The Steelers later agreed a one-year contract with former Pro Bowl guard Trai Turner, his agent Drew Rosenhaus told ESPN Adam Schefter.
DeCastro told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on Thursday that he needed an ankle surgery.
“I have to have a third ankle operation,” DeCastro told the newspaper. “I tried to fix it last year, but the bone spurs kept coming back. It was pretty annoying to me all year.”
When asked by the point of sale if he still wanted to play, DeCastro said, “I need to see how the operation goes, but I would have no problem ending the day and getting on with my life.”
| player | Professional bowls |
|---|---|
| OL David DeCastro | 6th |
| DT Aaron Donald | 6th |
| LB Bobby Wagner | 6th |
| TE Travis Kelce | 6th |
| LB Khalil Mack | 6th |
| DT Fletcher Cox | 6th |
| – Since 2015 | |
DeCastro hasn’t attended the mini camp lately. When asked about DeCastro a week ago coach Mike Tomlin said, “If I thought that injury circumstances or reasons why people don’t participate are significant, I would share them with you.”
DeCastro was in the final year of his contract with a cap hit of $ 14.2 million. His release saves the Steelers $ 8.75 million in Cap Space. He was the Steelers’ first-round pick (24th overall) in the 2012 draft.
“David was without a doubt one of the leading offensive linemen during his time with us,” said Kevin Colbert, general manager of Steelers. “He helped us win a lot of football games, but it was David’s consistency, reliability and professionalism that stood out above all. We wish him all the best in his career.”
DeCastro missed the first two games of 2020 with persistent knee problems but appeared in 13 of Pittsburgh’s last 14 games.
With the release of DeCastro, the Steelers will have a returning starter on the offensive: Chukwuma Okorafor, who will likely move from last season’s seat on the right to the left tackle. Kevin Dotson also made a couple of appearances for DeCastro last season, but he is said to be the left guard.
The Los Angeles Chargers released Turner in March after first attempting to trade him. Turner, 28, was limited to nine games last season with a groin injury but recently said he was “back at 100 percent”.
Turner ran out of guaranteed money for a four-year $ 45 million extension he signed with the Carolina Panthers in 2017.
Turner was selected for five Pro Bowls in his first six NFL seasons. He was selected by Carolina in the third round of the 2014 draft and has played in 93 career games with 89 starts.
Brooke Pryor of ESPN and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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