The Pittsburgh Steelers added to their wide receiver room by selecting Michigan WR Roman Wilson with the 84th overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. The team is excited about the versatility that Wilson can bring to the offense, and in a press conference after the selection, offensive coordinator Arthur Smith had high praise for Wilson.
“He’s got versatility. As the game’s evolved and if you do motion and you play condensed on early downs, on the X to Z it’s kind of interchangeable. Now you’re getting into some of the dropback situations in the passing downs, he’s got inside-out flex, certainly you look his instincts, you can play inside on those kind of obvious pass situations. But he’ll have a lot of versatility, he’s got a lot of instincts, again, high football character guy,” Smith said via the Steelers YouTube channel.
After trading Diontae Johnson, the Steelers had a hole at wide receiver opposite George Pickens, and without a clear-cut option in the slot, Wilson is an intriguing addition to the Steelers because he can function outside or as a slot receiver. Smith said that the Steelers had dinner with Wilson, presumably before his Pro Day, which was also attended by Mike Tomlin and Omar Khan.
At Michigan, Wilson was a favorite target of J.J. McCarthy, pulling in 48 receptions for 789 yards and 12 touchdowns. He’s sure-handed, something that Steelers fans will surely like to hear, and his ability to move around the offense should help him function as a top target for Russell Wilson or Justin Fields in Pittsburgh.
Smith doesn’t often get production out of more than two wide receivers on offense, and he likes his condensed formations which he mentioned as an area where Wilson’s versatility can really come into play. Pickens is going to be Pittsburgh’s No. 1 receiver, but Wilson is going to get on the field early given the Steelers wide receiver room not having a lot of top-end talent. Calvin Austin III, Van Jefferson and Quez Watkins will fill out the room, but unless the Steelers make another wide receiver addition via trade or free agency, Wilson is probably the team’s No. 2 as it stands right now.
The board has broken really well for the Steelers, as they’ve been able to fill three of their biggest needs with an offensive tackle in Troy Fautanu in the first round, a center with Zach Frazier in the second round and now Wilson, a player Mike Tomlin loved at the Senior Bowl, in the third round. Wilson’s versatility, speed and blocking ability should endear him to Steelers fans, and it’s going to be fun to watch him work in Smith’s offense.
