PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) —Tyson Alualu shocked the NFL world on Friday, March 27, when it was announced that instead of signing with the Jacksonville Jaguars, as free agency reports had revealed, he would actually be re-upping with the Pittsburgh Steelers on a new two-year deal.
NFL Network's Tom Pelissero broke both the first and second parts of the story, but Alualu's re-signing had an atypical twist to it.
After initially intending to sign with the Jaguars, the former first-round pick (of the Jaguars in 2010 actually) reneged on his decision and decided to re-sign with the Steelers.
It's not often you hear tales of players backing out of commitments like this, but there was a key impetus for Alualu's change of heart: catching COVID-19.
According to Pelissero, Alualu intended on flying to the Jaguars' facility after reaching a gentleman's agreement with the team.
The flight would have allowed the defensive tackle to travel to Florida, sign his contract, and consummate the next chapter of his life.
But unsurprisingly, COVID threw a monkey wrench into the plan.
And this gave Alualu some time to think things over.
As Pelissero detailed in his tweet, Alualu has spent his years in Pittsburgh with his family and having his "dream home" built.
Alualu's coronavirus convalescence might have given him time to introspect on the significant career decision.
Anyway, Alualu will be going into his 12th year in the league — after spending the last four with the Steelers.
Now he's looking to contribute for his fifth and sixth years in Pittsburgh, as well.
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