Jones' future with Steelers may depend on this year's NFL Draft

BY MARK KABOLY *| Monday, April 25, 2016



Jarvis Jones' future with the Steelers may come down to this weekend's NFL Draft.

The Steelers have yet to make a decision on whether they will pick up the fifth-year option on Jones' rookie contract and this weekend's draft could influence that decision.

“We won't talk about specific contract-type issues, but I think it is safe to say once we get through the draft, it will affect how we do business with our veteran players from that point forward,” Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert said on Monday during a news conference leading up to this week's draft.

The Steelers own the 25th overall pick and an outside linebacker, albeit not an urgent need, could be a possibility for the Steelers within the first three rounds.

Colbert wouldn't got into specifics about Jones — the Steelers' first-round pick in 2013.

“We avoid talking about individual contacts and fifth-year options,” Colbert said.

The rookie wage scale that was a part of the 2011 collective bargaining agreement required all rookies to sign four-year contracts. For players taken in the first round, the team has the option to extend the contract for an extra season, but that decision has to be made by May 2 the year before the final year of the deal.

The Steelers have used the option both times since the new CBA. In 2014, the Steelers picked up Cam Heyward's option and in 2015 they picked up David DeCastro's. In both instances, the Steelers picked up the option well before the deadlines — April 22 for Heyward and April 9 for DeCastro.

If the Steelers do pick up Jones' fifth-year option, he would get a guaranteed salary $8.369 million on the first day of the 2017 new league year. If the Steelers don't pick up the option, Jones would be an unrestricted free agent following the 2016 season.

When a team picks up a player's fifth-year option, it is a strong indication that they plan to sign him to a long-term extension. The Steelers signed Heyward to a five-year, $59.25 million deal three months after picking up his option in 2015 and it is likely they will do something similar with DeCastro in the coming months.

Jones has been a disappointment since being the 17th overall pick. Jones has started 26 of 36 games in three years, but has managed only five sacks. Jones started 15 games last year, but played the least amount of snaps out of the four outside linebackers of James Harrison, Arthur Moats and Bud Dupree.

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