The Pittsburgh Steelers have a rich history at the wide receiver position, with it being a particular strength of theirs in the NFL draft. This year, they’ll need to display that incredible talent once again, otherwise they may set up their new quarterback room up failure before a single snap is played. After trading Diontae Johnson to the Carolina Panthers, the Steelers have signed Van Jefferson and Quez Watkins to fill out some of the depth at the receiver position, but more work needs to be done.
Many fans would love to see the team sign Pittsburgh-area native Tyler Boyd, but free agency can be a tricky game to play, especially for a team like the Steelers with so many holes and such big aspirations. As the days roll on, it feels more and more likely that the team will select a receiver on one of the first two days of the upcoming NFL draft.
Luckily, this year’s crop of receivers is exceptional, with the team having many different types of receivers to choose from come the end of April. Like choosing which flavor of ice cream you want from Dairy Queen, the Steelers have options. One of those is Keon Coleman, a young, big-bodied receiver from Florida State. On a recent episode of the Fantasy Life Podcast, Pro Football Focus analyst Trevor Sikkema outlined why he thinks Coleman would fit best in Pittsburgh.
“Pittsburgh, kind of. Russell Wilson loves the moon ball, loves the deep ball. Let him go up and get it. We had the DK Metcalf connection there for a little bit,” Sikkema said on how Pittsburgh could use Coleman in a similar way to how Seattle used Metcalf when Wilson was there.
Metcalf and Coleman are certainly very different players, with Metcalf being a kind of athletic freak who is only seen once in a blue moon, but Sikkema’s point still stands. He also broke down some of Coleman’s strengths and weaknesses during the podcast, explaining how Coleman struggles to gain separation in single coverage. Therefore, Wilson, who has always had one of football’s best high-arcing throws that could trace a rainbow through the sky, would be perfect to drop passes right down into Coleman’s hands.
However, the argument against Coleman going to Pittsburgh is that the Steelers already have a player like this in George Pickens. Typically, a team would want its top receivers to have different skill sets in order to remain diverse and keep defenses on their toes. With so many good receivers in this draft class, is it wise to target a player who is so similar to your most established player at the position?
The saying also goes that you can’t have too much of a good thing, so maybe playing to Wilson’s greatest strength would give Pittsburgh its best chance at success. Whatever the case may be, unless they pull off a blockbuster trade, the Steelers need to add a receiver in the draft. With question marks along the offensive line and in spots on defense, difficult choices will have to be made no matter what.
