The Pittsburgh Steelers have a perceived need at wide receiver, but the free agent market continues to run thin. Ian Rapoport reported on X that WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling is expected to sign with the Buffalo Bills, taking yet another option off the market.
He joins Zay Jones, Odell Beckham Jr., Ben Skowronek, and others to be the latest wide receivers to change teams in recent weeks, further reinforcing the idea that the Steelers will need to trade for a receiver if they want to add to the room. The free agent list is down to a handful of names that each have their own issues when it comes to being an option in Pittsburgh. They include Michael Thomas, Hunter Renfrow, Corey Davis, Julio Jones, Robbie Chosen, Martavis Bryant and a few others.
The deal is for one year, per Tom Pelissero on X. The amount is worth up to $4.5 million with a $1.125 million signing bonus, per Adam Schefter. This is roughly in line with several of the other recent FA WR signings.
Valdes-Scantling played for the Kansas City Chiefs for the last two seasons, winning back-to-back Super Bowls with the team. Prior to that he was with the Green Bay Packers, who selected him in the fifth round of the 2018 NFL Draft. He wouldn’t have been the significant playmaker that the Steelers are looking for opposite George Pickens. His career high in production came in 2020 with 33 receptions for 690 yards and six touchdowns.
He was one of the best options remaining on the market, however, as he has a wealth of playoff experience, including seven postseason starts with 24 receptions for 406 yards and four touchdowns. He also had interest from the Saints and Chargers, per Bleacher Report’s Jordan Schultz.
It is hard to determine who may or may not be available via trade for the Steelers at the wide receiver position if they do choose to add to the room prior to the season. Denver Broncos WR Courtland Sutton, either of the two San Francisco 49ers WRs in Brandon Aiyuk or Deebo Samuel, or Seattle Seahawks WR DK Metcalf make the most sense for various reasons, but none would likely happen until after the June 1 window due to salary cap ramifications.
The Steelers could also wait until roster cutdowns in September to see who becomes available when teams prune their rosters down from 90 to 53.
