Report: Bills cornerback Levi Wallace to sign with Steelers

According to multiple reports, cornerback Levi Wallace will sign a two-year contract with the Pittsburgh Steelers when free agency officially opens at 4 p.m. Wednesday. Jordan Schulz was the first to report the deal. 

Wallace started all 19 games for the Bills last season, including both in the postseason. He finished with 58 tackles, 10 passes defensed, two interceptions and one fumble recovery in the regular season. He played a career-high 994 defensive snaps, and quarterbacks had a 72.6 passer rating throwing against him, completing 47-of-81 passes for 470 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. Because he played opposite White, Wallace was at times overlooked by fans and targeted by opposing quarterbacks who were wary of throwing against the All-Pro on the other side. Although he's not the biggest cornerback at 6-foot-0 and 179 pounds, Wallace never backed down from a challenge and was a willing tackler.

Wallace, 26, joined the Bills as an undrafted free agent out of Alabama in 2018 and worked his way into being a regular contributor, starting all 52 games in which he's played during the regular season since that time. Overall, he gave the Bills more than they could have reasonably expected throughout his time in Buffalo. His departure leaves the Bills notably thin at cornerback, especially given that All-Pro Tre'Davious White is working his way back from a torn ACL and there is at least some question as to whether he'll be ready to play in Week 1 of the 2022 season. Dane Jackson stepped in after White's injury and will be back, but after that, Wallace's departure intensifies the need at the position.

"We'll definitely monitor the Levi situation and we'll look for depth (in) free agency if we lose him," general manager Brandon Beane said earlier this month at the NFL scouting combine. "But we'll look for it anyway. We're always looking for competition, and then, yeah, we're definitely going to evaluate the corners here and try and get to know them through this process."

Wallace will follow backup quarterback Mitchell Trubisky to Pittsburgh and becomes the third Bills unrestricted free agent to reportedly agree to a deal elsewhere. It was reported Monday night that defensive tackle Harrison Phillips has an agreement in place to sign with the Minnesota Vikings.

Wallace's deal is reportedly worth $8 million over two seasons, which is a raise from the $1.75 million he earned last season, but lower than what he was expected to receive on the open market. Contracts website spotrac.com projected Wallace to receive a contract in the range of $9 million annually, although it should be cautioned that any financial terms at this point should be considered unofficial. 

If the $4 million average annual value proves true, that seems like a number the Bills could have matched. By not doing so, attention turns to how they'll replace him. There are several veteran cornerbacks who are entering free agency, including the Steelers' Joe Haden, the Raiders' Casey Hayward and the Vikings' Patrick Peterson.

If the Bills don't address cornerback in a meaningful way in free agency, it figures to be a prime position for Beane to target in the first round of the draft with the 25th overall pick.