Last night was a nice night for the Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver room, with both Diontae Johnson and George Pickens creating explosive plays with 30-plus yard receptions on the team’s opening drive. Allen Robinson II, who’s expected to be the veteran leader in the room, talked to reporters after the Steelers’ 24-0 win over the Atlanta Falcons and praised his fellow wide receivers.
“We have a special group. This is one of the best groups I’ve been around. We have a plethora of skill sets across the board, so it is like pick your poison. We have speed, we have good route [running], we have size. However, our work’s not done. It’s just beginning,” Robinson said via transcript provided by the team’s media relations department.
Robinson’s right in that the group’s work is far from finished. The Steelers have yet to start the regular season, and it’s going to be imperative that the receivers come ready to play with a tough Week One matchup against the San Francisco 49ers on the horizon.
But Robinson’s been in the league for a good bit, drafted by Jacksonville in the second round of the 2014 NFL Draft and spending time with the Jacksonville Jaguars, Chicago Bears and Los Angeles Rams, so for him to say this is one of the best room’s he’s been in means something. The Steelers have a lot of talent, with Pickens looking like he can be even better after a 52 reception, 804-yard rookie season, and Johnson, a former 1,000-yard receiver looking to bounce back after failing to find the end zone last year.
Then you have guys like Calvin Austin III, a speed demon who missed last year with a foot injury, and obviously Robinson, the savvy veteran expected to work in the slot. It’s a diverse group, like Robinson said, with varying skill sets, but all of them complement each other. Robinson isn’t the downfield burner, but with guys like Austin and Pickens and Johnson who can work deeper down the field, that sets up Robinson to be able to find space underneath and make plays to pick up some crucial yards.
Everyone is able to open up the field up for each other a bit, and with no shortage of weapons, it’s a group that could thrive with QB Kenny Pickett leading the charge. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see both Pickens and Johnson become 1,000-yard receivers in 2023, and the addition of Robinson as Pickett’s security blanket is going to help him the young quarterback truly be able to take that next step he needs to take in his development.
With the pieces this team has on offense, the Steelers should be a playoff team. Good production out of the wide receivers will be key to that coming fruition.
