The Pittsburgh Steelers have claimed former Baltimore Ravens’ WR Miles Boykin off waivers, according to NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo.
Boykin was waived by the Ravens over the weekend. A third-round pick in 2019, Boykin fell behind in Baltimore but found the end zone when he was targeted. In his three-year career with the team, he caught seven touchdowns on 33 total receptions.
But he especially fell out of favor last season, catching just one pass for six yards in eight games while also battling a hamstring injury to begin the season. Once healthy, he did log 144 snaps (63%) on special teams. In five career games against the Steelers, Boykin caught two passes for 20 yards and one touchdown, a red zone snag in a mismatch against LB Vince Williams (as you can see in the photo above).
By claiming him off waivers, the Steelers will take on his contract, which is set to pay him $2.54 million this year after qualifying for the NFL’s Proven Performance Escalator.
Boykin was a height/weight/speed monster out of Notre Dame. At nearly 6’4″, 220 pounds, Boykin blazed a 4.42 40 with a 43.5-inch vertical, 11’8″ broad jump, and impressive shuttle times. True to form, Pittsburgh showed plenty of pre-draft interest, including bringing him in for a pre-draft visit. They ultimately selected Diontae Johnson instead as more of a 1:1 replacement for Antonio Brown.
Boykin will add depth in an otherwise thin wide receiver room. The Steelers have lost JuJu Smith-Schuster, Ray-Ray McCloud, and James Washington this offseason, and prior to today, had yet to add to their receiver room aside from special teamer/return man Gunner Olszewski. Receivers with NFL experience in the Steelers’ room now include Diontae Johnson, Chase Claypool (Boykin’s Notre Dame teammate), Anthony Miller, Cody White, Gunner Olszewski, and Steven Sims.
This signing is a bit of a predictable one. Dave Bryan laid out all the reasons why Boykin could be attractive to Pittsburgh. From his lips to Kevin Colbert’s ears.
Check out our 2019 pre-draft profile on Boykin by clicking the link here. And here is a contextualization of his targets in 2018.
