![Matt Feiler](https://heavy.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/GettyImages-1229917714.jpg?quality=65&strip=all&w=780)
Joe Sargent/Getty Images Tyus Bowser of the Baltimore Ravens carries the ball between Matt Feiler #71 and Chase Claypool #11 of the Pittsburgh Steelers on December 1, 2020.
According to Adam Schefter, senior NFL Insider for ESPN, the Los Angeles Chargers have agreed to terms with Pittsburgh Steelers offensive lineman Matt Feiler on a three-year, $21 million contract.
This despite a report that the Steelers had identified Feiler as one of four ‘priority’ unrestricted free agents that the team hoped to retain, a group that also included cornerback Cameron Sutton, who the Steelers were able to keep, inking the University of Tennessee product to a two-year contract.
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The Feiler news came shortly after we learned that the Chargers had struck a deal with Corey Linsley (Green Bay Packers), making Linsley the highest paid center in the league with a five-year, $62.5 million agreement.
As for Feiler, he can officially sign his contract on Wednesday, March 17 at 4 p.m. ET.
Matt Feiler’s NFL Career Arc
Last year Feiler started 13 games for the Steelers, playing under the second-round tender as a restricted free agent, earning $3.259 million.
All in all, he started 40 games for the Steelers after earning a roster spot in 2017. He was signed by the Houston Texans as an undrafted free agent out of Division II Bloomsburg University, Pa., and spent a season on the Texans’ practice squad before he labored for two more years on Pittsburgh’s practice squad. Then in 2017 Feiler played in five games (one start) before finally cracking the starting lineup in 2018 and starting all 16 games in 2019.
The Steelers Offensive Line Remains in Transition
Pittsburgh’s offensive line is in the midst of a makeover, with guard/center B.J. Finney returning on a one-year contract after spending a year with Seattle and Cincinnati.
Yet starting left tackle Al Villanueva, 32, is still expected to depart in free agency after starting all 16 games at the position for the past five years.
Meanwhile, a contract announcement about right tackle Zach Banner could be imminent. In late February Banner indicated that he would be taking a break from social media until he had a deal for 2021.
In the past 24 hours Banner has started tweeting again, teasing what appears to be good news. First there was this:
And on Tuesday morning, this:
In January, Banner hinted that he would be re-signing with the Steelers after relating how he had ‘the best exit interview ever.’ If he does re-sign with the Steelers, it’s likely to be another one-year deal, much like the one-year, $1.75 million contract he had in 2020. Banner still needs to prove he is capable of holding down a starting job at either right or left tackle, as he suffered a torn ACL in the season opener against the New York Giants last year.
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Also Read:
• Steelers Ink GM Kevin Colbert to Contract Extension
• RFA Linebacker ‘Plans to Sign’ With Steelers
• Lions Release Ex-Steelers Tight End
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Steelers Lineman Signing With Chargers: Report