Cam Heyward made his career intentions known after he showed up to OTAs with two sessions remaining on Wednesday.
Heyward, a 13-year veteran of the Pittsburgh Steelers, turned 35 in May — both typically indicative of the end of a career in the NFL. But not if it’s up to Heyward.
“In my mind, I got three years, and I want to maximize them,” Heyward said when speaking with media for the first time this spring. “I want to play at a high level. I want to go deep in the playoffs. We got a good team and I’m going to do my part to be ready for all those situations.”
The decision could be up to the Steelers. Heyward is in the final year of a four-year, $65.6 million extension he signed three days before the 2020 regular season kickoff.
Heyward is now four years older and coming off a season where he just couldn’t stay healthy — a rarity for the usually stable defensive end. A right groin muscle tore off the bone in the season opener and sidelined him for six games.
Though he returned for the final 11 games, Heyward’s production showed he wasn’t the same. He finished with 33 tackles and two sacks after posting 10 and 10.5 the previous two seasons.
After favoring his left groin during the final stretch of the season, Heyward needed another surgery to “tighten down” things.
Heyward is looking forward to putting the 2023 season behind him and never again speaking of the G word.
“The groin feels great,” Heyward said in a press conference on Wednesday. “I’m doing good. I’m running. I can do whatever I want. There are no limitations.”
“I can’t wait to not talk about my groin.”
Should the Steelers not extend him this offseason, Heyward will have extra motivation to prove he’s still worthy of a new contract—one that will allow him to finish his career in black and gold.
