The tenure of tight end Ladarius Green with the Pittsburgh Steelers could be a short one. Green has been dealing with recurring headaches as of late, and if they don’t come to an end, he could retire or be cut by the Steelers in an effort for the team to recover the signing bonus they gave him this summer.
According to a report from Pro Football Talk, Green has been dealing with the headaches since the beginning of training camp. The possibility remains that Green could retire because of those headaches or be cut by the team.
If Green ends up retiring, he’ll owe the team his entire $4.75 million signing bonus. If the team cuts him, they could seek to recover the signing bonus, but only if Green had been dealing with the headaches prior to signing with the team.
Even if he’s cut, however, there’s a chance the Steelers could make the same argument the Patriots advanced three years ago regarding defensive end Jonathan Fanene.
in 2013, the Patriots signed Fanene, gave him a $3.85 million signing bonus, and later cut him due to a knee injury that, as the team argued, came from a condition he had failed to disclose. If Green didn’t tell the Steelers he was still experiencing headaches at the time he was signed (and if he was indeed experiencing headaches), the Steelers could try to recover the $4.75 million.
Green got a four-year, $20 million contract from the Steelers this summer, and was expected to replace the retired Heath Miller as Ben Roethlisberger’s primary outlet at tight end. Earlier this week, Roethlisberger didn’t exactly seem too confident about Green’s status.
But the expectations are sinking so low that when Ben Roethlisberger talked about the tight end situation Tuesday, he did not mention Green. Asked how Green was coming along, Roethlisberger answered with a two-shoulder shrug.
Yep, this is all fine. Green’s health is the most important thing here, but if he can’t play in 2016, it’ll be a huge blow to Pittsburgh.
