Donte Moncrief said one of the first people to reach out to him after becoming a Pittsburgh Steeler was the man who will be throwing him the football in 2019: quarterback Ben Roethlisberger.
At his initial press conference with the media, Moncrief said he got the call from Big Ben while at the team doctors getting his physical.
“I talked to Ben earlier, probably like time I made it, he texts me, he called me first and I couldn’t answer because I was in the doctor office,” he told reporters. “And then he text me and it was exciting to get a message from Ben Roethlisberger, the quarterback and like you said, just ready to get going really to get some chemistry and lock in on the plays and getting ready.”
Moncrief was then asked what Roethlisberger told him.
“He was just telling me how he’s ready to get going. He’s ready to get ready to make some plays and get some throws in and meet up in the off season. Get some chemistry, we’re going to get some chemistry earlier so it’ll rollover to the season.”
He’s the newest, but maybe not the only, new addition to the receivers room when the offseason comes to a close. The Steelers still figure to be in the market for a receiver early in the draft. While this class of wideouts isn’t particularity top-heavy, it offers plenty of depth, key for a Steelers’ team that still has issues defensively they have to fix, too.
Moncrief will be one of the several players tasked in replacing Antonio Brown, though when asked, deflected and said he was focused on “being Donte.” Though versatile and capable of lining up all over the field, he’ll primarily function as the teams “X” receiver, the spot Brown held for most of his career.
