For the past four seasons, Mike Mitchell has roamed the Steelers backfield as their starting free safety.

Fans either love or hate Mitchell which has led to him being a polarizing figure in his time here. Today, during the start of free agency at 4 p.m., the Steelers are expected to cut ties with Mitchell for cap related reasons.

Mitchell did have a sub-par 2017 season for the Steelers and cutting him will save the Steelers about $5 million in cap room although they did express interest in bringing him back for cheaper.

This option doesn’t seem likely.

Despite his struggles through injuries and performance, is cutting Mitchell and allowing him to potentially move to a new team a good thing for the Steelers as they are trying to win a Super Bowl before quarterback Ben Roethlisberger retires?

I personally like Mitchell and am kind of surprised he wasn’t embraced more in Pittsburgh. He was a smash mouth player who was a smashing hit type of guy, which is what I think of when I think of a Steelers defense. He didn’t have much in the way of ball skills and succeeding Troy Polamalu and falling well short of anything he did will make the fans a bit leery towards him.

With cap problems and some needs to fill, the Steelers need every bit of cap room. He is aging and coming off an injury-riddled season.

The problem is, what can the Steelers get to replace him?

The short answer seems to be a draft pick. They will probably use a top two round pick on a safety to sit opposite of Sean Davis in the backfield. This would leave a relatively young combo in the Steelers defensive backfield which is fine but it’s something that isn’t ideal against Tom Brady in late January. There is also no guarantee that they will get a legit first round talent in the first round as they may be reaching by pick No. 28.

The other option could be to bring in a free agent in a few days after the dust clears on the other high-end free agents that the Steelers never spend on and won’t spend on because it isn’t their style. They also don’t have the cap room to make such a move.

Regardless of the move, they will be bringing in someone who will need to learn the defense. While that may not take long, the Steelers will want someone that can be a presence right away. With either a young option or a cheap depth veteran, it’s not likely either would be an immediate upgrade over Mitchell. But regardless, either of those options will play cheaper.

Steelers fans may be barking up the wrong tree in wanting Mitchell gone. They will get someone who is just as good and likely not much better for cheaper. They will have to learn the playbook whereas Mitchell already knows it. The Steelers might be better off resigning Mitchell cheap for one more year while drafting a safety that can learn under Mitchell but could step in if he gets hurt.

We will see what route the Steelers go but cutting Mitchell might not be the best thing and Mitchell haters may see that come the regular season.

The post Flavell: Cutting Mike Mitchell could be haunting for Steelers appeared first on Pittsburgh Sports Castle.