It wasn’t exactly a major splash, and the news didn’t necessarily send shock waves through the nation, but the Pittsburgh Steelers’ decision to re-sign inside linebacker Steven Johnson is not only a fairly significant move, it’s also a validation of the fact that he played well last season and that he has a role with this team.
Now, the timing itself probably shouldn’t garner all that much interest, as one-year, veteran-minimum deals are the easiest to do and commonly take place before the start of the new league year—that is, before the beginning of free agency—but none the less, the fact is that they already knew that they wanted him back.