Joe Haden Released By Browns and Signed By the Pittsburgh Steelers

By Djack

The Browns have cut two time pro bowl cornerback Joe Haden, who was one of the only good players apart of this abysmal franchise. This has got to be the highlight of Joe Haden's career. A great cornerback that has been overlooked for years because he's played for the worst franchise in the NFL since being drafted. Haden has basically been the only bright spot for the Browns in recent years besides for Joe Thomas. Due to his injury history, the Browns wanting to get younger, and the Browns trying to save as much cap space as possible they decided to cut Haden just a week before the 2017 season kicks off. Most players are usually devastated after getting cut by a team, however in Joe Haden's case he probably felt like he just hit the lottery.

Haden has accumulated plenty of individual awards and has made tons of money with the Browns, so the only thing he has left to do in his NFL career is win. That's why when he signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers on a 3 year $27 million deal, he essentially secured a few winning seasons under his belt. The Steelers only major flaw defensively was their secondary and Joe Hayden will help patch the bleeding back there. He's a true number #1 corner when healthy, something the Steelers haven't had in ages. He's only 28 years old, so he's still got a couple more years of being at an elite level before Father Time decides to start taking away his agility and acceleration. Now, Haden will finally get to experience what playing for an above .500 team feels like and will get to finally taste postseason football, barring a major collapse in the Steelers season.

Overall, this is a great signing for the Pittsburgh Steelers. They were 16th in pass defense last year, isn't terrible, but isn't great either. Joe Haden will surely help tighten up the back end of that defense. Steelers need all the help they can get if they want to finally slay the New England Patriots in the playoffs, something they've never really been able to do. I'm not sure if this move quite puts them over the top, although it surely doesn't hurt. Honestly, I'm just happy Joe Haden's suffering is finally over.