End Game: Does Signing Of Steelers Brown Shut Door On Wallace?

The Steelers #2 receiver, who is soon set to be the #1 receiver on the team, signed a 5 year extension worth $42.5 million.  Keep in mind that this deal only puts a small hit on this years cap.  Here are the details:

Brown receives an $8.5 million signing bonus that can be spread over six seasons for salary cap purposes. His salaries will range from $540,000 this season to $8.71 million in 2017, with $6 million each in 2014 and ’15. The deal creates an immediate salary cap hit of $2.264 million and jumps the Steelers’ cap-countable money for 2012 by $1.7 million. (From Triblive.com)

Message to Mike Wallace – You want your deal? Show up to camp.  Sign the tender first, show up to camp second, then the Steelers will work out your deal.  It still might not be exactly what you want, but at least you are playing this season.

Brown has been rewarded for his hard work and output (CUEUPU).  It’s not top dollar, but the Steelers knew they had to strike the iron before it became too hot with potentially Wallace, Brown, and Sanders all needing contract renewals in the 2013 offseason.

While it doesn’t appear that Wallace is completely shut out from the Steelers.  It pretty much eliminates any chance Wallace has of signing a long term deal that would include THIS season.  They’ve taken away another option, and the Steelers are drawing a line in the sand – sign the tender and then we’ll see where things go from there.  What will Wallace do?  Hard to say – I’m sure he’s not please at these turn of events.  He is continually losing the upper hand and quickly running out of time.

So what happens to Wallace now?