The Steelers have agreed with William Jackson III to wipe out his roster bonuses, clearing $44,000 a game off the books for the team for the rest of the season, according to Field Yates of ESPN.
The per-game roster bonuses raised Jackson’s cap hit by $350,000, and so by clearing those out, his cap hit drops by about $350,000. It takes Jackson’s cap hit when coming to Pittsburgh from $3.1 million to around $2.77 million. The rest of the salary for the season stayed with the Washington Commanders.
Pittsburgh traded a conditional sixth-round pick for Jackson and a conditional seventh-round pick. They are still slated to have Jackson under contract through 2023, but they can release him pre-June 1 during the offseason with no dead money in their cap space heading into the future.
So, Pittsburgh has plenty of flexibility with William Jackson III. If they find that he is playing at a high level, it could be possible that Jackson’s large $9.25 million base salary in 2023 is spread out over years with an extension. Still, it will all depend upon Jackson’s play on the football field. If he does not improve from what he has done thus far in the year, Jackson’s time in Pittsburgh could be brief.