Pittsburgh, PA -- Pittsburgh Steelers running back Jerome Bettis has accepted a pay cut to return with the club for the 2004 season.

Bettis signed a new contract with the Steelers on Monday. Financial terms of the pact weren't disclosed, but the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported Monday that Bettis' agent worked out a deal that will pay "The Bus" a base salary of $1 million, with a chance to earn another $1 million in incentives.

Bettis was slated to earn $3.75 million for the upcoming season, plus a roster bonus of $750,000.

The deal will save the Steelers another $3.75 million for salary-cap purposes. The club trimmed some money last week with the release of tight end Mark Bruener and cornerback Dewayne Washington.

The free agent period begins Wednesday and the Steelers are now under the salary cap.

Pittsburgh suffered through a 6-10 mark in 2003, but did watch Bettis move past Marcus Allen and Jim Brown into sixth place on the NFL's career rushing list.

Bettis, who has said he wants to finish his career as a Steeler, completed the 2003 campaign with 811 yards rushing with seven touchdowns. He has run for 12,353 career yards to go along with 69 rushing scores.