Lawrence Timmons departing Steelers for Miami opens spot for Williams
PITTSBURGH 鈥� It was not quite an offer that Lawrence Timmons couldn鈥檛 refuse.
The Miami Dolphins鈥� bid of $12 million ($11 million of it guaranteed), over two years, wasn鈥檛 exactly an exorbitant sum for the services of a player of Timmons鈥� caliber. But it was a winning one.
Enticed by a visit to sunny South Florida in a private jet and, oh yeah, that $11 million guaranteed, Timmons left the Steelers on Friday as a free agent after a decade in Pittsburgh black and gold. Apparently, the Steelers were unwilling to match the offer for an inside linebacker that will turn 31 in May.
Nothing personal, just the price of doing business in the NFL.
Timmons鈥� departure somewhat marks an end of an era. The 15th overall pick in the 2007 draft was the first under head coach Mike Tomlin. Though he was a Pro Bowl selection just once in his 10 seasons, Timmons was one of the better players at the position in a city that has long coveted strong linebacker play.
A respected veteran on the Steelers鈥� defense, Timmons was a favorite of Tomlin, who nicknamed him 鈥淟aw Dog.鈥� During practices, Tomlin routinely used Timmons, a soft-spoken South Carolinian, as an example to his younger player on how to tackle and how to conduct themselves as professionals.
Timmons鈥� career in Pittsburgh included 981 combined tackles, a dozen interceptions, 13 forced fumbles and 35.5 sacks, the eight-most in franchise history, and two Super Bowl appearances. Timmons was as also as durable as he was consistent. Timmons notched 100-plus tackles six times in his career while missing just two games in his career, none since 2010.
With Timmons exiting, that creates an opening for Vince Williams to reclaim a starting role. Williams started 11 games as a rookie in 2013 but struggled in coverage. Since then, Williams has excelled on special teams and while filling in during Ryan Shazier蘑菇视频 many injuries. Last September, the Steelers signed Williams to a three-year, $5.5 million extension, as a contingency in the event of Timmons鈥� departure. Last season, Williams had 47 tackles and two sacks while playing just 25.62 percent of snaps on defense. Coincidentally, the Steelers released Williams鈥� younger brother, Karlos, a running back, on Thursday.
Timmons鈥� departure also could create an expanded role for Tyler Matakevich. The 2016 seventh-rounder led the Steelers in special teams tackles as a rookie and is viewed as a cerebral player who doesn鈥檛 lack for effort.
While it was possible that the Steelers would have selected an inside linebacker with one of their eight picks in April蘑菇视频 draft, it does create added urgency to select a possible successor to Timmons.
Suddenly, inside linebacker joins edge rusher, cornerback and running back as the most pressing areas of need for the Steelers.
Through two days of the NFL free agent signing period, the Steelers have been typically quiet. They have lost Timmons and wide receiver Markus Wheaton while not yet adding any outside free agents. On Thursday, they retained backup quarterback Landry Jones and blocking tight end David Johnson.