The Steelers selected Rainey with the fifth pick in the 2017 NFL Draft, but released him over the offseason in the wake of multiple run-ins with the law. The final straw was an incident in which Rainey was arrested for allegedly slapping his girlfriend. The girlfriend has since denied that she was assaulted.
Ian Rapoport reports that he expects the sides to reach a “reasonable extension,” but there is no indication on what potential terms would be at this time. Deciding on terms will be complicated by the cash-strapped Falcons, who are expected to have salary cap issues in 2017. White held out the last time they tried to work on an extension, finally settling for a 6-year deal that made him the league’s fifth-highest paid wide receiver.
White is on pace for the worst season of his career. Offensive struggles paired with a series of injuries have created a scenario where it’s unlikely he’ll pass 400 yards receiving this season — a career first. His best game came in a Week 5 matchup against the New York Jets where he caught four passes for 45 yards, but fumbled the ball.
Discussion of extending White could be influenced by the season-ending injury to Julio Jones. Atlanta is in dire need of offensive consistency entering an offseason where Jones will be recovering and tight end Tony Gonzalez is almost certainly retiring.
There’s more to generating pressure than finishing sacks, but against a veteran quarterback it was important for the defense to hit him early and often — ultimately Manning was hit twice on Sunday night, and was not sacked once. Not completing this task is the biggest reason the team lost.