Is There A Surprise Receiver Ready To Step Up For Steelers?
Credit: Mark Konezny-USA TODAY Sports
We know that the Pittsburgh Steelers have George Pickens, who racked up 1140 yards last season and led the league with a staggering 18.1 yards per catch. We also know that the rest of the Steelers’ wide receiver group is pretty thin, with their top options (Van Jefferson, Calvin Austin III, and Quez Watkins) combining for 531 yards last season, less than half of Pickens’ output.
What we don’t know is: What are the Black and Gold going to do to address this? Rumors have flown around about their interest in a receiver throughout the offseason, but every day that passes makes the possibility slightly less likely. It’s not just things like, say, Tee Higgins signing his franchise tender with the Cincinnati Bengals (though, an inter-AFC North trade of this magnitude feels absurd). Teams could simply decide to roll with what they have. At what point does a team like the San Francisco 49ers simply say, We’ll just run back the receiver group that just took us to the Super Bowl, for example?
The free agent pool is pretty barren at this point, so that leads to the viable alternative to a trade, and that is… nothing. We have Brandon Aiyuk at home, and Brandon Aiyuk at home is Jefferson, Austin, Watkins, and rookie Roman Wilson.
If that happens, though, you have to imagine someone would have to step up. Right? Say what you will about Russell Wilson’s time in Denver, but he’s thrown for 3000-plus yards in each of his 12 seasons. Even if Pickens gets 1000 of those, the remaining 2000 have to get split up somehow. Someone has to get those targets. So which receiver has the best chance of surprising us with a solid, 700-800 yard season? Let’s take a look.
Immediately, the candidate that stands out is the one that’s never disappointed in the NFL: Roman Wilson. The third-round draft pick is coming off of his National Championship run, where he led the Michigan Wolverines with 789 yards on 48 catches. For all of the talk about Michigan relying on the run, Wilson’s yardage total represents about 25% of JJ McCarthy’s nearly 3000 passing yards in 2023. His 16.4 yards per catch made him the Pickens of Michigan, so to speak.
While the big worry here is whether Wilson can adjust to the NFL as a rookie and produce immediately, it wouldn’t be unprecedented for him to have a big year. Rookie wideouts can thrive, even when drafted in the third round or later. Terry McLaurin was a third-round pick in 2019, but hauled in 58 catches for 919 and 7 touchdowns as a rookie in Washington. Amon-Ra St. Brown — the second highest-paid receiver in the league — went from a fourth-round pick to a 90-catch, 912-yard season rookie season (5 TDs) in 2021.
Heck, just last year, Puka Nacua racked up an absurd 1486 yards on 105 catches, with 6 touchdowns for good measure. He did this all as a fifth-round pick!
It’s a tall order to ask him to quite reach those heights, but a lot of rookie success can come from sheer opportunity, and until the Steelers consummate a trade, Wilson should get it. Last month, PFF’s Gordon McGuinness speculated that Wilson could be in line for 80-plus targets. And wide receivers coach Zach Azzanni is certainly preparing him for that kind of workload. “I’m all over him, man,” he says of the tough-love approach he’s giving the rookie. “I have to be… There’s a lot that goes into playing at the NFL level. If you’re not ready to go Week 1, you get exposed.”
Not only do you get exposed, but someone is in line to take your job. Someone like Jefferson, who is without question the most accomplished receiver behind Pickens. Admittedly, that’s not a crowded field, but there’s at least proof of concept. In 2021, Jefferson spent the first half of the season as (arguably) the No. 3 option behind Cooper Kupp and Robert Woods. He snagged 27 catches for 433 yards and 3 touchdowns before Woods went down with injury.
Jefferson filled Woods’ shoes for the last 8 games, and while he didn’t take off, he didn’t slow down with the added attention. He had 23 catches for 369 yards and another three touchdowns. Now, this was in Peak Sean McVay’s offense, behind a receiver that nearly cracked 2000 yards in Kupp. But still, an 800-yard season is an 800-yard season. Injuries in these past two years were a limiting factor in him getting back to form, though, leading to Jefferson’s new opportunity with Pittsburgh.
If you squint, you can sort of see a similar situation. McVay and Kupp are on another level than what the Steelers have, but Pickens is a vertical threat that will take opposing defenses’ attention. Sure he’s had the injury bug, but he’ll only be 28 this season and with just 61 career games, doesn’t have too much wear on his body otherwise. Russell Wilson isn’t Stafford, but he’s also been a high-end quarterback for years. There’s hope! Maybe!
Or, hey, what about Austin? The 2022 fourth-rounder can grab an opportunity after being held to one year of playing (and one career start) in the two years since being drafted. His 5-foot-9 frame might force him to the slot despite playing on the outside at Memphis. But if either Roman Wilson or Jefferson can at least be a plausible vertical threat, there should be room for him in the middle of the field to make plays.
That’s all Austin did in college. In his final two years as a Tiger, Austin racked up 2202 yards with 19 touchdowns through the air, adding another trip to the end zone courtesy of a 69-yard run (his only rushing attempt of the year) as a senior. On the rare occasions he got looks from his quarterbacks in the NFL, he teased that game-breaking ability. It doesn’t matter if you’re short when you can get as open as Austin got on this 72-yard touchdown.
While the proof of concept isn’t quite there for Roman Wilson, Austin, or even Jefferson over the past two seasons, someone has to get in line for targets on this squad. There isn’t anyone that jumps off the page, but there is an intriguing mix of upside with three candidates for the No. 2 option. Maybe doing nothing isn’t the worst idea after all.
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