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Bettis, Steelers agree to 1-year deal
Jerome Bettis
Chaz Palla/Tribune-Review
Jerry DiPaola is the Tribune-Review high school sports editor. He can be reached via e-mail.
Bettis, who has recently contemplated retirement, will play his 13th season for $1.5 million, plus performance incentives. He was scheduled to earn a prohibitive $4.484 million in the fifth year of a six-year, $30 million contract he signed in 2001.
"We're elated the deal worked out," Bettis' agent, Lamont Smith, told The Associated Press in Indianapolis, where Smith is attending the NFL Scouting Combine. "We anticipate the Steelers will make another run at the Super Bowl and that is Jerome's motivation to come back, to play in the Super Bowl."
Super Bowl XL will be played in Bettis' hometown of Detroit.
This is the second time in two years that Bettis, who is fifth on the NFL's all-time rushing list with 13,294 yards, has agreed to take less money to remain with the Steelers. He played last season for $900,000, plus incentives -- a pay cut of about $2.7 million.
Bettis, 33, is expected to start the 2005 season as a backup to Duce Staley.
That was the case in 2003 and 2004, but Bettis ended up leading the Steelers in rushing both seasons. He totaled 941 yards last season while earning his sixth Pro Bowl berth.
The restructuring of Bettis' contract was the third move the Steelers have made in the past two days to get under the NFL's approximately $85 million cap. The team also released two former starters, cornerback Chad Scott and tight end Jay Riemersma.
Bettis replaced Staley as the Steelers' starting running back after Staley injured his hamstring in the seventh game last season. He rushed for 100 or more yards in all six of his regular-season starts and added 101 in a playoff victory against the New York Jets.
