Scott Brown of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review interpreted recent comments from cornerback Ike Taylor as indicating that Taylor will return to the Steelers.
If Taylor does, it will happen because the Steelers offered him a market-value contract, or at least something very close to it.
Per a source with knowledge of the situation, Taylor fully intends to test the open market whenever free agency begins. So even though Taylor had good things to say about his eight years in Pittsburgh, when he says that the ball is in the team’s court, he apparently means that it’s up to the team to match (or at least come close to matching) any offers he receives.
The fact that Taylor isn’t regarded as a top-tier cornerback may not matter all that much. The draft wasn’t regarded as having a deep class of high-end talent, and beyond Nnamdi Asomugha and Antonio Cromartie, there aren’t many/any big names in the free-agent pool.