Steelers DT Cam Heyward confirms hold-in, wants restructured deal to reflect All-Pro season: 'Honestly, looking to be valued'
"Honestly, looking to be valued," Heyward said, when asked what he was looking for with the deal, via Chris Adamski of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.
The 36-year-old tackle, who has spent his entire NFL career in Pittsburgh, signed a three-year extension with the Steelers last September. But Heyward told reporters on Monday that he had told the Steelers at the time to expect him back at the table this year if he was named All-Pro in 2024.
And Heyward did, earning his fourth First-Team All-Pro honor last season, and his seventh Pro Bowl. He then approached the Steelers to ask for a reworked deal back in February.
"It's hard for me, after the year that I had, to really justify playing at the number I'm playing at," Heyward said on Monday, via The Athletic's Mike DeFabo. "I understand I signed a contract last year. But to be completely honest with you, when I signed that, I told them, 'When I have an All-Pro year, expect me to come back.'"
Last Thursday, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that Heyward hadn't been fully participating in practice yet, as part of his hold-in. Though Heyward and the Steelers had reportedly talked about the deal privately, they hadn't made progress in negotiations.
Heyward said Monday that he is also weighing longer-term options to get his deal. The tackle hinted that he would be willing to miss some regular season games in order to get Pittsburgh to re-negotiate.
"I think there are definitely options out there that could reflect that," Heyward said, when asked if he was prepared to miss regular season games, via ESPN's Brooke Pryor.
Heyward's current deal averages out to $14.5 per year, making him the 22nd-highest paid DT in the league, via Over the Cap. (Chris Jones, who earns $31.75 in average annual value off a contract signed last March, is the highest-paid.)
Age could be a factor with Heyward, who is 36 and will be 38 when he would be a free agent off his current deal. But Heyward has not slowed down in the past several years: He started in all 17 games last season, putting up 35 solo tackles, eight sacks, 71 combined tackles and a career-high 11 passes defended.
Heyward didn't earn his first Pro Bowl nod until he was 28, and then went the next five straight seasons. Since becoming a Pro Bowler in 2017, he has been named to the Pro Bowl every season except for 2023, when he missed two months due to injury. And that season, he was named the Walter Peyton Man of the Year.
More than that, Heyward has made it clear that he wants to spend his entire career with the Steelers.
"There are certain guys who are one-helmet guys," Heyward said in the team release when he signed his extension last year. "I want to be one of those one-helmet guys."
Heyward did not play in the Steelers' preseason game on Saturday, and it seems likely that he will miss more of the preseason until he reaches a new deal.
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CNN
a minute ago
- CNN
A UFC fight at the White House? Dana White says it's happening
Media Donald TrumpFacebookTweetLink Follow Hours after Paramount and UFC announced a billion-dollar rights deal, Dana White said he had yet to hear from his friend, President Donald Trump, on his thoughts about the fight company's new streaming home. That was fine with White. The UFC CEO was set to travel to Washington on August 28 to meet with Trump and his daughter, Ivanka, to catch up and discuss logistics on the proposed Fourth of July fight card next year at the White House. Trump said last month he wanted to stage a UFC match on the White House grounds with upwards of 20,000 spectators to celebrate 250 years of American independence. 'It's absolutely going to happen,' White told The Associated Press. 'Think about that, the 250th birthday of the United States of America, the UFC will be on the White House south lawn live on CBS.' The idea of cage fights at the White House would have seemed improbable when the Fertitta brothers purchased UFC for $2 million in 2001 and put White in charge of the fledging fight promotion. White helped steer the company into a $4 billion sale in 2016 and broadcast rights deals with Fox and ESPN before landing owner TKO Group's richest one yet — a seven-year deal with Paramount starting in 2026 worth an average of $1.1 billion a year, with all cards on its streaming platform Paramount+ and select numbered events also set to simulcast on CBS. ESPN, Amazon and Netflix and other traditional sports broadcast players seemed more in play for UFC rights — White had previously hinted fights could air across different platforms — but Paramount was a serious contender from the start of the negotiating window. The Paramount and UFC deal came just days after Skydance and Paramount officially closed their $8 billion merger — kicking off the reign of a new entertainment giant after a contentious endeavor to get the transaction over the finish line. White said he was impressed with the vision Skydance CEO David Ellison had for the the global MMA leader early in contract talks and how those plans should blossom now that Ellison is chairman and CEO of Paramount. 'When you talk about Paramount, you talk about David Ellison, they're brilliant businessmen, very aggressive, risk takers,' White said. 'They're right up my alley. These are the kind of guys that I like to be in business with.' The $1.1 billion deals marks a notable jump from the roughly $550 million that ESPN paid each year for UFC coverage today. But UFC's new home on Paramount will simplify offerings for fans — with all content set to be available on Paramount+ (which currently costs between $7.99 and $12.99 a month), rather than various pay-per-view fees. Paramount also said it intends to explore UFC rights outside the US 'as they become available in the future.' UFC matchmakers were set to meet this week to shape what White said would be a loaded debut Paramount card. The UFC boss noted it was still too early to discuss a potential main event for the White House fight night. 'This is a 1-of-1 event,' White said. There are still some moving parts to UFC broadcasts and other television programming it has its hands in as the company moves into the Paramount era. White said there are still moving parts to the deal and that includes potentially finding new homes for 'The Ultimate Fighter,' 'Road To UFC,' and 'Dana White's Contender Series.' It's not necessarily a given the traditional 10 p.m. start time for what were the pay-per-view events would stand, especially on nights cards will also air on CBS. 'We haven't figured that out yet but we will,' White said. And what about the sometimes-contentious issue of fighter pay? Some established fighters have clauses in their contracts that they earn more money the higher the buyrate on their cards. Again, most of those issues are to-be-determined as UFC and Paramount settle in to the new deal — with $1.1 billion headed the fight company's way. 'It will affect fighter pay, big time,' White said. 'From deal-to-deal, fighter pay has grown, too. Every time we win, everybody wins.' Boxer Jake Paul wrote on social media the dying PPV model — which was overpriced for fights as UFC saw a decline in buys because of missing star power in many main events — should give the fighters an increased idea of their worth. 'Every fighter in the UFC now has a clear picture of what the revenue is…no more PPV excuses,' Paul wrote. 'Get your worth boys and girls.' White also scoffed at the idea that the traditional PPV model is dead. There are still UFC cards on pay-per-view the rest of the year through the end of the ESPN contract and White and Saudi Arabia have teamed to launch a new boxing venture that starts next year and could use a PPV home. White, though, is part of the promotional team for the Canelo Álvarez and Terence Crawford fight in September in Las Vegas that airs on Netflix. 'It's definitely not run it's course,' White said. 'There were guys out there who were interested in pay-per-view and there were guys out there that weren't. Wherever we ended up, that's what we're going to roll with.' White said UFC archival footage 'kills it' in repeat views and those classic bouts also needed a new home once the ESPN deal expires. Just when it seems there's little left for UFC to conquer, White says, there's always more. Why stop at becoming the biggest fight game in the world? Why not rewrite the pecking order in popularity and riches and go for No. 1 in all sports? 'You have the NFL, the NBA, the UFC, and soccer globally,' White said. 'We're coming. We're coming for all of them.'
New York Times
3 minutes ago
- New York Times
‘Unguardable' with ‘freaky lateral quickness': Hunter Renfrow returns to where he broke out
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Dabo Swinney referred to him as 'craftsman' when it comes to running routes. Carolina Panthers wide receiver Adam Thielen used the word 'unguardable.' But before Hunter Renfrow was a Houdini on the route tree, he was a by-the-books rookie receiver who seldom strayed too far from the play's design. That approach helped Renfrow thrive at Clemson, where he went from a walk-on to the most prolific receiver in College Football Playoff history. Advertisement But then-Raiders coach Jon Gruden wanted more from Renfrow, whose breakthrough came via a 65-yard touchdown catch at Houston midway through his rookie year. With the Panthers headed to Houston for a joint practice and preseason game this week, Renfrow hopes he's on the verge of another pivot point — a spot on the Panthers' 53-man roster after spending all of 2024 out of the NFL dealing with a health issue. As he prepared to play in Houston for just the second time, Renfrow reflected on how his career began to take off after the 2019 game against the Texans. 'I think I was overthinking everything. Whenever the coaches write a play a certain way, Gruden would always say, 'Make the play come to life.' I wasn't doing that. I was kind of just doing what was in the playbook,' Renfrow said in a phone interview last week. 'And if it said run 10 yards and run in, that's what I was doing. That's what I'd always been coached to do. But in the NFL everybody can do that, and people are a lot more athletic than I am. So kinda had to put my own little spin on it. That was right when I started to do it a little unorthodox but it was somewhat working for me.' Hunter Renfrow breaks a tackle and runs 65 yards for his first career TD! @Raiders @renfrowhunter #OAKvsHOU 📺: CBS📱: NFL app // Yahoo Sports appWatch free on mobile: — NFL (@NFL) October 27, 2019 According to Thielen, Renfrow's skill set is hard to describe and almost defies physics. While receivers are taught at a young age to keep their feet underneath them so they don't slip when making cuts, that somehow doesn't apply to the 5-10, 185-pound Renfrow. 'When he's changing direction, his strides are far away from his body,' Thielen said. 'So you've got to have some serious body control and center of gravity stability to do that.' Advertisement But after being drafted in the fifth round after the Tigers' second national championship in three years, Renfrow was playing tentatively as a rookie. Through the Raiders' first six games, Renfrow caught 14 passes for 115 yards. Then came Week 8 at Houston, where Renfrow took a third-down pass from Derek Carr, eluded safety Jahleel Addae and sprinted in for his first career touchdown. According to Next Gen Stats, the play had an expected 6 yards after the catch. Renfrow picked up 57 yards after the reception; the 65-yard pickup remains the longest of his career. 'That was my first touchdown. It's the only time I've ever played there, my rookie year. I was kind of struggling, so it was good to get things off the ground,' he said. 'Finally got a pass on third down. It was like a little, 5-yard in-breaking route and slipped a tackle and ran like 60 yards,' Renfrow added. 'It gave me some confidence and I think it gave the coaches some confidence in me as well. It was kind of a turning point for me.' Renfrow finished with four catches (on four targets) for 88 yards against the Texans, who won 27-24 when Deshaun Watson — Renfrow's college teammate — threw a game-winning touchdown after getting kicked in the face by a pass rusher. But the big play sparked Renfrow, who pulled down 35 passes for 490 yards and four touchdowns over the final seven games, eclipsing the 100-yard mark in the last two. Renfrow rode the strong finish to another 600-yard receiving season in 2020 before putting together a monster '21 — 103 receptions for 1,039 yards and nine touchdowns, capped by a Pro Bowl berth. Renfrow started feeling poorly right around the Pro Bowl, with physical activity often bringing on nausea. It would take a while for doctors to diagnose him with ulcerative colitis. By then he'd lost 35 pounds and seen his production dip dramatically after he'd signed a two-year, $32 million extension in 2022. Advertisement Renfrow spent last year working at his uncle's equipment relocation and storage business in South Carolina and wondering if his playing days were done. But after getting his condition under control through diet and medication, Renfrow had his agent reach out to the Raiders and Panthers in March for tryouts. And on the Panthers' first day in pads last month, there was Renfrow shaking defensive backs with quick-twitch moves while Swinney looked on from the sideline. But going from 0 to 60 after a year away from the game left Renfrow with a pulled hamstring, and trainers shut him down for two weeks. Had it been the regular season, Renfrow said he wouldn't have missed any games. 'I think they're just trying to be cautious,' he said. 'With taking last year off, trying to just be smart with the load being put on my body. Get re-calloused back up.' When healthy, Renfrow brings a different element to a deep receiving group — even if it's not the easiest thing to explain. 'I don't think there's really a way to describe it,' Thielen said with a laugh. 'You've just gotta see it.' Renfrow usually lines up in the slot, where he uses an array of cuts and fakes and jukes to change directions and separate from defensive backs. Renfrow isn't often asked to go deep, although offensive coordinator Brad Idzik said he has a way of making defenders think he's going long. 'He's got some freaky lateral quickness. And then when he opens up, he's like big strides — a powerful first four steps, which simulates, 'I'm going full-tilt vertical,'' Idzik said. 'He simulates that every single time and then he eats up whatever leverage you give him.' Bryce to Renfrow against Moehrig. — Joe Person (@josephperson) August 11, 2025 Thielen, who's beginning his 12th season, said the 29-year-old Renfrow has a unique way of getting open. 'He trusts it. And it's pretty much unguardable,' Thielen said. 'You see it in one-on-ones. You see it in team reps. Not a lot of times is the ball coming his way and (there's) not a lot of separation. That's a credit to him and his route craft, his ability to get open day in and day out. It's not easy to do in this league.' Advertisement Renfrow has return experience, but otherwise doesn't bring much to the Panthers' special teams, often a roster-spot separator at some positions. But it's those qualities that Thielen and Idzik talked about that give Renfrow a good shot to make the 53 in what would be a great comeback story. 'You can only control what you can control. What makes sense to me and what I've always thought from a receiver's standpoint and being a teammate standpoint, I judge myself off am I being a good teammate and am I helping the team win?' Renfrow said. 'If I can say yes to those two things, and I feel good about it and where things are headed, feel like we're getting better, then I take it day by day. And if I can't, then there's no point in playing.' After his health scare and subsequent year off, Renfrow is trying to be less nervous about football and appreciate the little things. That could mean returning this week to the Houston Topgolf facility where he and some friends hit balls before his big game six years ago. 'I think I'm a guy that's really anxious before games. I just want to do well. I want my teammates to count on me. But then sometimes you have paralysis by analysis,' he said. 'So coming back, I want to do more of that. I want to enjoy life. I mean, I really enjoy life. But like I want to get out there and if we're in a new city, get out and see a place and enjoy being in a new city. Appreciate the journey a little more than I probably did my first five years.' Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Play today's puzzle
New York Times
3 minutes ago
- New York Times
Miguel Andujar, acquired to crush left-handed pitching, delivering big for Reds
CINCINNATI — The Cincinnati Reds' trade deadline didn't make headlines, with three small moves to tweak the team's roster rather than overhaul it. Chief among the team's moves was its last, as the team completed a deal for Miguel Andujar from the Athletics in the final hour leading up to the deadline. Advertisement Andujar wasn't one of those names bandied about in trade rumors, nor was he more than a footnote nationally, but he's already made a difference for the Reds in a key category targeted at the deadline by president of baseball operations Nick Krall and general manager Brad Meador: hitting against left-handed pitching. Tuesday, the Reds battered Philadelphia Phillies lefty Ranger Suárez, posting six runs on 10 hits in Suárez's 5 1/3 innings. Suárez's ERA rose from 2.94 to 3.28, partly due to Andujar's second home run as a Red and his first against a lefty, in Cincinnati's 6-1 victory at Great American Ball Park. 'Well, it's a good night,' Reds manager Terry Francona said of his team's 10 hits against the Phillies starter. 'But we are situated where I think we can be more competitive against both sides of pitchers because of the moves that got made.' Andujar's .991 OPS against left-handed pitching over the past three seasons is the third-best mark of any player with at least 150 plate appearances against lefties over that period, trailing only Aaron Judge (1.256) and Tyler O'Neill (.992). The Reds have faced just three left-handed starters since Andujar arrived. However, Andujar didn't get to face the Atlanta Braves' Austin Cox at the Speedway Classic in Bristol, Tenn., as the game was stopped by rain just as Andujar stepped into the box for his first plate appearance in a Reds uniform. The Reds beat the Chicago Cubs last Tuesday in a game started by lefty Shota Imanaga. While Imanaga allowed only one run, it came on an RBI double by Andujar. Tuesday, Andujar launched his first home run against a lefty as a Red, a solo homer in the fourth inning off of Suárez to give the Reds a 3-0 lead. Before Andujar joined the Reds, the team was 19th in OPS (.690) against left-handed starters, hitting .226/.307/.383 against lefty starters overall. Since then — in just 53 total plate appearances as a team, including Tuesday's game — they're 11th in OPS (.798) against left-handed starters, with a .320/.358/.440 slash line. Advertisement Tuesday, Francona rolled out a lineup with just one left-handed hitter, leadoff man TJ Friedl, against Suárez, with Andujar in the cleanup spot. '(Andujar) has 1.000 OPS against left-handers, that might be the best in baseball,' Francona said. 'That's a big bat to have in the middle of your order.' Andujar is now 2-for-6 against lefties since joining the Reds, but more than that, he's 8 for 23 (.348) overall in a Reds uniform, with half of his hits going for extra bases. 'Miggy rakes — I've seen him in New York with me, the dude can straight up hit a baseball,' said Reds catcher Jose Trevino, who was a teammate of Andujar's with the New York Yankees. 'He brings some versatility for us, being able to hit lefties really, really well.' Andujar, 30, finished as the runner-up to Shohei Ohtani in American League Rookie of the Year voting in 2018, when he hit 27 home runs with a .297 batting average for the Yankees. That's been his best season to date, maybe until this season. Although the Reds have faced only three left-handed starters, he's started six of the 11 games the team has played since he joined it. Andujar homered off of Pittsburgh right-hander Mike Burrows in Sunday's win and had a first-inning single Monday against the right-handed Taijuan Walker. 'I can hit both, I think,' Andujar said. 'I feel comfortable with lefties and righties. I go up with my plan, I watch a lot of video and I watch the games, too, against righties, too. That helps me contribute.' Friedl not only earned his way into the lineup against left-handed pitching, but has also stuck in the leadoff spot against pitchers of either persuasion. Friedl is better against right-handers this year with a .797 OPS, but two years ago, when facing left-handers, he had a .962 OPS. From his spot atop the lineup, Friedl said Andujar has helped the team's lineup overall. Advertisement 'He's a well-disciplined, high-contact guy, but he's got thump,' Friedl said. 'You saw that in Pittsburgh and today where he just gets the head (of the bat) out, and I think his plate discipline and his sights of where he wants to put a ball is so advanced, it helps him know when he can let it rip like today or if he wants to just take his hit the other way — that's a special thing.' With the right-handed Noelvi Marte's transition to the outfield, which was possible because of the team's addition of Ke'Bryan Hayes on deadline eve, Francona has enough right-handed bats to stack them against left-handed pitching. He could even use the right-handed-hitting Santiago Espinal at third base for the left-handed-hitting Hayes, and then late in the game, remove Espinal, a fantastic defender, to put in a transcendent fielder in Hayes as a defensive replacement. The result is a more potent lineup against lefties with seven right-handed bats in addition to Friedl and the switch-hitting Elly De La Cruz. Was Tuesday just a good night against a good lefty, or have the Reds found a way to improve against lefties? They won't have to wait long to find out, as left-hander Cristopher Sánchez, who is 11-3 with a 2.36 ERA on the season, takes the mound in Wednesday's series finale. Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Play today's puzzle
