Pittsburgh Steelers edge rusher Alex Highsmith is garnering trade interest from several NFL teams, Tom Pelissero of The Ringer reports.

“Other teams have inquired about trading for Highsmith since last year, and the Steelers’ answer has always been no,” Pelissero writes, via Noah Strackbein of Sports Illustrated. “But they currently have a logjam at edge rusher, with T.J. Watt turning back the clock with a stellar performance this season at age 32, while younger players Nick Herbig and Jackn Sawyer have part-time roles. Highsmith is still in his prime at age 29 and figures to be the subject of more calls leading up to the deadline.”

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The Steelers extended Nick Herbig in the offseason on a $100 million deal, which makes it all but certain he will take one of the starting edge roles in 2027. In doing so, one of Highsmith or T.J. Watt will have to be gone. Considering Highsmith will be in the final year of his deal in 2027 and has no guaranteed money remaining on his deal, he becomes a prime trade candidate next offseason.

However, with the Steelers trying to make one more run with Aaron Rodgers, trading Highsmith during the season seems highly unlikely – next March is a different story.

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