Mike Wallace: Does he have a long term future in Pittsburgh?

Restricted Free Agency

As of right now, Mike Wallace has not been offered an offer sheet in restricted free agency. If a team would offer him an offer sheet, the Steelers would have the opportunity to match the offer sheet. However, if they couldn't match the offer sheet or if they chose not to, they would receive a first round draft pick in this years NFL draft. At this point, it seems unlikely that any team will attempt to claim him, so it would appear that he would be a Steeler for at least one more season. 

However, he could still choose to not sign his restricted free agent tender and he could hold out for a long term deal. He would only make 2.742 million dollars this year, far below what he would be making if he were able to be an unrestricted free agent. If he does hold out, he would be aiming to ink a long-term deal with the Steelers, which may not be possible at this point in time because the Steelers have almost no spare salary for this year. If he does hold out, he would probably choose to play the last 10 weeks so that he could become an unrestricted free agent in 2013.

What will Happen Next?

The Steelers want to keep Mike Wallace, but Wallace has expressed his desire to be one of the highest paid wide receivers in the NFL. Next year when Wallace is scheduled to be an unrestricted free agent, the Steelers will once again be struggling to be under the salary cap. This year, they restructured several players' contracts so that they could be under the salary cap this year. However, this pushes money that would have been counted against the Steelers this year into future years using signing bonuses. Also, next year's salary cap is projected to remain the same as this year or to rise very slightly. These two things point towards the Steelers once again struggling to be cap compliant in the early months of the offseason. When Wallace finally is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent, the Steelers might simply not have enough money to pay him. In my opinion, Mike Wallace is about to play his last season in Pittsburgh, which is a sad pill to swallow.