Prior to the 2023 season, QB Kenny Pickett had some strong comments pertaining to second-year WR Calvin Austin III. The two were selected together in the 2022 draft, but Austin missed his entire rookie season due to a foot injury. Pickett told the media prior to the start of the season that Austin was “going to play a huge role in this offense.” Reflecting back on the season, that never came to pass, although he did start out the year with a lot more targets and usage than he ended it with.
Austin made his regular season debut in 2023 with six targets and six receptions against the San Francisco 49ers. That only amounted to 37 yards, but it looked at the time like Pickett’s prediction about Austin’s involvement would come true. Over the first four weeks, he was targeted 21 times and caught 12 of those passes for 143 yards and a touchdown. He was also given two carries for three yards. Those 14 total touches over the first four games amounted to nearly half of the total touches he received during the 2023 season. He finished with 29 total touches, including 17 receptions for 180 yards. He tacked on two more touchdowns with one against the Buffalo Bills in the playoffs.
Here was a video from Brian Baldinger breaking down that deep 72-yard touchdown from Pickett to Austin against the Raiders. Early in the season, it looked like Austin could provide that big-play deep threat that the Steelers’ offense has been missing.
After the Steelers used Austin a fair amount over the first month with moderate success, his usage fell off a cliff. Six more receptions the rest of the season for just 44 yards, including one in the playoffs against the Buffalo Bills. The period of time where he was touching the ball the most was while WR Diontae Johnson was out for Week Two through Five. Outside of that, he did very little as a third or fourth option in the offense. As our Alex Kozora published, the Steelers have gotten very little out of their slot receivers for multiple seasons now.
Back when Austin was drafted, many thought the Steelers found themselves a gem, especially when it came out that the Baltimore Ravens were going to take him with the very next pick. Peter King was inside the Ravens’ war room during that draft and recalled somebody saying “gotta be kidding me” when their division rival beat them to the pick.
With the hiring of new offensive coordinator Arthur Smith, the Steelers may start to move away from the use of slot receivers and shift more towards fullbacks, if his history as a coordinator is any indication. So where does that leave Calvin Austin?
His other value to the team is as a punt returner. He returned 29 punts in 2023 for 249 yards. His longest return was 34 yards as he averaged 8.6 per attempt. That was the sixth-worst average among returners with at least 22 attempts, just 0.1 yards per attempt higher than former Steeler Ray-Ray McCloud as a member of the 49ers. And most of those other punt returners double their value on special teams in being the kick returner as well. Austin had zero kick returns.
Allen Robinson II served as the third WR on the depth chart for much of the season. His deal technically runs through 2024, but he’s a prime cap casualty candidate. That could open up more opportunities for Austin, but the Steelers are also likely to add to the position group in free agency or the draft. In a run-first offense, his limited size (5-9, 162 pounds) probably isn’t well suited to be an impact blocker or add value in that area.
He is buried behind other receivers George Pickens and Diontae Johnson on the depth chart for at least one more season. Johnson’s contract currently runs through the 2024 season, so if they choose to move on, Austin could potentially see increased usage in the final year of his rookie contract in 2025.
As it stands now, it’s difficult to see Calvin Austin III getting an increase in playing time or usage moving forward, especially with the nature of Smith’s anticipated offensive system.
