Haven’t done enough.
That’s how Mike Tomlin summed up the state of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ tight end group. And if there weren’t already alarm bells going off signaling a roster move, there sure are now.
With that in mind, here are seven options that would make sense for the Steelers to consider as a late-preseason trade or cutdown add. All speculation of course but these suggestions are in-line with the moves Kevin Colbert tends to make this time of year.
Jason Croom/Buffalo: Croom is a name I’ve talked about since the dead of the offseason. The Steelers brought him in for a pre-draft visit when he came out of Tennessee in 2017 and he burst onto the scene last season with the Bills, starting three games and catching 22 passes for 259 yards.
The foot injury Tyler Kroft suffered probably keeps Croom on the roster and he’s dealing with a hamstring injury himself. But if the Bills are willing to flip him for a late 2020 pick, the Steelers could be interested.
Seth DeValve/Cleveland: DeValve is one of my favorites on the list. He’s very much on the bubble right now after dealing with a concussion but he’s been cleared and played in this weekend’s game. He has good NFL experience with his best year coming in 2017, catching 33 balls and one score. He’s caught two career touchdowns against the Steelers so they’re aware of him.
He’s a little on the short/smaller side and yes, the concussion is a little worrisome – good thing the Steelers have never acquired tight ends with those problems before! – but an AFC North trade is feasible, even if it’s rare. Pittsburgh traded for Justin Gilbert and have sent them Sammie Coates. It’s been done before.
Derek Carrier & Luke Willson/Oakland: Couple of Raiders here and I’m stealing Willson from Dave Bryan’s suggestion box. Raiders can’t keep them all so one of these guys should end up on the street. Willson is the more attractive player here and would slide in well as the team’s #3 and ability to step up as the #2 if injury mandates it.
JP Holtz/Washington: This is a bit more “bottom of the barrel” than I’d like but Holtz is arguably outside looking in even after Jordan Reed’s concussion. Pitt guy, versatile, and known for his blocking. It would be a very specialized signing or perhaps a trade for say, a conditional 7th rounder, but he’s a better blocker than Gentry is right now.
Antony Auclair/ & Jordan Leggett Tampa Bay: And two familiar names to wrap up the list. We wrote about Auclair yesterday and you can read about him in the trade scenario I wrote. Leggett is on here for obvious reasons after the team attempted to put in a waiver claim when the Jets canned him. Interest is still there, I’m betting.
