Robert Spillane is officially back with the Steelers, as the team announced today that he signed a one-year contract. On March 13, Brooke Pryor of ESPN reported that Spillane, who was an exclusive rights free agent, was tendered by the Steelers and he was expected to sign.
With the Steelers releasing Vince Williams to save $4 million in cap space last week, Spillane is expected to start next to Devin Bush at inside linebacker in 2021.
Spillane played in 12 games and made seven starts in 2021. He finished the season with 43 tackles, 37 of them solo stops, two sacks, four tackles for a loss, four passes defended, three quarterback hits and an interception and fumble recovery. Spillane's best performance came in Week 8 at Baltimore when he had his first career interception, picking off Lamar Jackson and returning it 33 yards for a touchdown, along with a career-high 11 tackles, 10 of them solo stops, a forced fumble and two pass breakups.
The week before, Spillane stopped Derrick Henry in his tracks on the goal line. Spillane earned a lot of respect from his teammates for the play and sat up front on the plane ride back to Pittsburgh from Nashville, which is where the starters sit.