Steelers' Bargain Hunting Pays Off Again

There's a pretty strong belief that the Steelers avoid the free agent market. Because of their belief in the draft and the Rooney's lack of a Daniel Snyder-size bankroll, they ignore free agents and focus instead on developing their own stars.

It's only halfway true. It's fair to say that Pittsburgh won't be in the market for the top free agents on the market next year, just like they haven't gone shopping for a big-money free agent in any of the past 17 years. But Pittsburgh does go shopping in the bargain bin. And more often than not, they find deals -- like linebacker Keyaron Fox, the star of Sunday's win against the Vikings.

When Lawrence Timmons was sidelined by a high ankle sprain before the season opener, Fox stepped in and recorded 10 tackles against the Titans. He had another solid effort (five tackles) against the Bears next week before handing the starting job back to Timmons.

But when Timmons went down with another ankle injury on Sunday, Fox stepped in to provide the game's biggest play -- intercepting Brett Favre and returning it 82 yards for a touchdown -- the first interception of his career. Timmons has said he'll be back in two weeks when Pittsburgh returns from its bye week, but if he's not ready, the coaching staff and the Steelers fans have to feel quite comfortable about seeing Fox stepping in at inside linebacker.

Fox is just another example of the Steelers kind of free agent -- the inexpensive, underappreciated role player who is better than his price tag. When Fox hit free agency after the 2007 season, he didn't get a whole lot of interest. He was an oft-injured backup linebacker for the Chiefs who had made only four starts in four years, so Pittsburgh was able to sign him to a one-year deal for the veteran minimum. They liked his special teams play enough during their run to the Super Bowl to sign him to a two-year, $1.8 million contract extension that will keep him in Pittsburgh through 2010.

Fox isn't the only bargain free agent who's paid off in recent years. Mewelde Moore didn't have a whole lot of offers on the free agent market, but the third-down back has proven to be a steal with his three-year, $5 million deal. Ryan Clark was not listed as one of the top safeties when he hit the free agent market, but the free safety has proven to be one of the bargains of the decade at four years, $7 million.