Local

Steelers sign Troy Polamalu, Heath Miller to extensions; Release Foote

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Troy Polamalu and Heath Miller are doing their part to help the Pittsburgh Steelers get under the 2014 salary cap.

The eight-time Pro Bowl safety and the venerable tight end both signed new three-year contracts with the team on Wednesday designed to give the Steelers some cap relief before the new league year begins next week.

Terms of the deals were not disclosed, but both contracts are designed to give Pittsburgh some flexibility heading into free agency as the Steelers look for answers following consecutive 8-8 seasons.

Polamalu was scheduled to make $8.25 million in 2014 in the final season of a four-year contract he signed in 2011. The 32-year-old is coming off a bounce back year in which he played in all 16 games after being limited by injuries in 2012.

The deal came hours after the Steelers re-signed safety Will Allen, meaning it's unlikely Pittsburgh will make any attempt to bring back Ryan Clark, who will become a free agent next week.

Polamalu missed nine games in 2012 with a strained calf and revamped his offseason conditioning campaign last spring. It paid off handsomely. Polamalu picked off two passes and recorded 69 tackles while playing in every game for just the third time in the last eight years.

The 31-year-old Miller caught 58 passes for 593 yards and a touchdown in 2013 after sustaining a major right knee injury at the end of the 2012 season. He caught a season-high eight passes in a 37-27 win over Detroit on Nov. 17 that keyed a late 6-2 flourish as Pittsburgh avoided its first losing season in a decade.

The moves continued a busy week for the typically quiet Steelers. Pittsburgh tagged linebacker Jason Worilds as a transition player on Monday, with Worilds quickly agreeing to the one-year deal, opening the door for both sides to work on a long-term contract.

"Feels good to be back with the ones I bled with," Worilds tweeted on Wednesday.

The decision to keep Worilds — who posted a career-high eight sacks in 2013 — likely means the Steelers will part with LaMarr Woodley, whose cap number in 2014 is $14.1 million. Woodley has struggled to stay healthy in recent years and hasn't played a full 16-game season since 2010.

In addition, the team announced Wednesday that it released linebacker Larry Foote, cornerback Curtis Brown and offensive tackle Levi Brown.

Foote spent the past four seasons with Pittsburgh after he was originally selected by the Steelers in the fourth round (128th overall) of the 2002 NFL Draft. Foote spent his first seven seasons in Pittsburgh before playing for the Detroit Lions in 2009 and then returning to the team a year later.

Curtis Brown played for the Steelers for three seasons after originally being selected by Pittsburgh in the third round (95th overall) of the 2011 NFL Draft. In three seasons, Brown played in 34 regular-season games.

Levi Brown was acquired by the Steelers in a trade with the Arizona Cardinals on October 2, 2013. He sustained a triceps injury during pregame on October 13, 2013, and was placed on the team's Reserve/Injured List two days later.