Ex-Cowboys Starter Re-Signs with Steelers in Free Agency

Getty Former Dallas Cowboys safety Damontae Kazee celebrates after a big play.

A former Dallas Cowboys defender has returned to the Pittsburgh Steelers on a two-deal year.

When it comes to defensive reinforcement, Dallas has focused on retaining key members, including defensive tackle Johnathan Hankins and linebacker Leighton Vander Esch. It appears the Steelers are taking a similar approach by bringing back safety Damontae Kazee.

“We have signed TE Zach Gentry to a one-year contract and S Damontae Kazee to a two-year contract,” Pittsburgh tweeted.

The Steelers signed Kazee in the 2022 free agency window after the former San Diego State star spent the 2021 season with Dallas, for whom he started 15 games. Even though there was “mutual interest” between the Steelers and Kazee to bring him back in 2023, according to Heavy Sports’ Matt Lombardo, he tested the free agency market. He signed within a couple of days of the new league year, according to KPRC’s Aaron Wilson, and the team made the signing official on April 4.

He will get $6 million over two years, including a $1.75 million signing bonus, which is the only part of the contract that is guaranteed, Wilson reported.

Kazee, who will be 30 when the season starts, has carved out an impressive NFL career over six seasons, although his 2022 season with the Steelers was a down year, with four games started. “It’s not clear if Kazee will be expected to start with the Steelers in 2023,” Steelers Now’s Alan Saunders wrote on March 17.

Kazee Facing New Challenge with Steelers

Kazee has had extreme highs and lows since entering the NFL in the 2017 draft as a fifth-round pick. His four-year stint with the Atlanta Falcons sums it up well, as he went from playing a small percentage of snaps to bringing down 7 interceptions in one season in 2018.

Pro Football Reference shows that he’s always had a ballhawk playstyle with 14 career INTs, two of those coming in his singular campaign with the Cowboys. Speaking of which, Kazee’s time with Dallas was probably his best overall season other than 2018.

The former Aztec standout registered four passes defended and 35 solo tackles, chipping in two forced fumbles to cap off a solid season. He started 15 games but appeared in all 17 contests.

That season didn’t translate to big money with Pittsburgh, but his new two-year deal will be the highest yearly salary average of his career. Spotrac states that he’ll earn an average of $3 million per year.

Cowboys Turning Attention to RB in Free Agency?

While the Steelers have been working on bringing back Kazee, the Cowboys are apparently in the market for a new running back. Dallas has been linked to several NFL draft prospects, but ESPN insider Bill Barnwell believes the team could add a marquee RB if the right situation materializes.

“The Cowboys could look toward a market that still includes Leonard Fournette, Latavius Murray and Kareem Hunt unsigned. There’s also a chance expensive veterans such as Derrick Henry and Dalvin Cook could be released after the draft. Dallas could add a rookie in April’s draft, but Pollard’s uncertain status for Week 1 leads me to believe the team would probably prefer to have a more experienced back on the roster,” Barnwell wrote on March 30.

Dallas parted ways with longtime RB Ezekiel Elliott earlier in the free agency window, instead committing to Tony Pollard by franchise-tagging the 25-year-old running back.

The Cowboys will want to replace Elliott in some fashion, but how they do so will be a major narrative for the next month.