On March 10, 2015, the Carolina Panthers officially released running back DeAngelo Williams.
He said he was told the Panthers didn’t plan on running the ball enough to justify keeping both him and Jonathan Stewart.
Three days later, Williams signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
A year-and-a-half later, the Steelers have to be grateful Carolina decided it didn’t have enough rushes for Williams.
Prior to Williams signing in Pittsburgh, there was no one to back up starter Le’Veon Bell. When former backup running back LeGarrette Blount decided to walk off the field and back to New England in Week 12 of the 2014 season, Bell shouldered virtually all of the load in the backfield.
When Bell was injured in Week 17 that year, the trio of Josh Harris, Dri Archer and Ben Tate was easily stalled for 43 combined rushing yards in Pittsburgh’s 30-17 Wild Card loss to Baltimore. That, along with Bell’s two-game suspension to start the 2015 season, created a need for a legitimate No. 2 running back.
Enter Williams.
Last season, Williams finished with 907 rushing yards, 40 catches for 467 receiving yards and 11 total touchdowns. The offense didn’t miss a beat when he was in the game.
It still hasn’t.
He started the 2016 season with an AFC Offensive Player of the Week award after rushing for 143 yards and two scores against Washington. The oldest running back in the NFL (he’s 33 years old) is still getting it done.
So does that make Williams the best signing general manager Kevin Colbert has made since he joined the Steelers in 2000?
Given the team’s history with signing free agents, the Williams signing doesn’t exactly have a ton of competition, especially before the 2014 season when Pittsburgh became more active — by its standards — than usual.
Safety Mike Mitchell is the only other big name signing currently on the roster. Mitchell had a Pro Bowl-caliber season last year, but is he as valuable as Williams? It’s tough to say, but with Mitchell, the defense is still just above average.
Mitchell’s predecessor, Ryan Clark, is another candidate for this “most valuable signing” title. Clark started eight seasons for the Steelers at free safety and was named to a Pro Bowl in 2011. He’s a worthy contender, despite flying under the radar as such.
When Clark was signed for four years, he was expected to compete with 2006 third round pick Anthony Smith. Clark’s solid play in the defensive backfield and Smith’s struggles earned Clark another four-year deal after the 2009 season.
Pittsburgh also has a host of free agents who have done well in lesser roles, namely Keyaron Fox, Cedric Wilson, Arnaz Battle, Will Allen, Mewelde Moore and Byron Leftwich. (Still, there was also the disaster that was the Sean Mahan signing in 2007.)
Perhaps the standard, though, for Steelers free agent signings is linebacker James Farrior.
Farrior totaled 142 tackles his last year with the New York Jets, playing out of position at outside linebacker before moving back inside when the Steelers signed him in 2002. From 2002-2011, Farrior was the leader of a Pittsburgh defense that, for multiple years, was the top rated in the NFL. He won two Super Bowls, was a two-time Pro Bowler and was a team captain.
In total, he had 733 tackles, 30 sacks and 10 interceptions before being released after the 2011 season.
Despite Williams’ bargain contract — two years at $4 million total — and his value to the team’s offense, it’s hard to argue that his signing tops Farrior’s. Farrior played at a high level for a decade with the team, after all.
Still, when it’s all said and done, the Williams signing will go down as one of Colbert’s best.
Now, the question becomes whether Williams will get a chance to enhance his résumé after this season.
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