Though third-year wide receiver George Pickens is not among the players participating in the rookie minicamp this weekend at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex on the South Side, Pittsburgh Steelers’ rookie wide receiver Roman Wilson can’t wait until he gets a chance to take the field with him.
Wilson, drafted by the Steelers at No. 84 overall out of Michigan, spoke to reporters after Day 2 of rookie minicamp and stated that he looks forward to getting to know Pickens and learning from him on the field as part of the Steelers wide receiver room.
Not just Pickens, either. All of the veterans the Steelers have on the roster currently at receiver.
“Just following them, trying to be like them, trying to be great,” Wilson said to reporters regarding what he’s most looking forward to once the veterans get into the building, according to video via Aaron Becker on Twitter. “Learning from them and just bonding with them.”
Coming out of Michigan, Wilson has plenty of experience to bring to the table as a receiver, but he needs to add more to his game. As a smaller receiver who profiles more as a slot-only guy, Wilson is looking to buck that belief, showing he can play inside and outside and truly thrive at the NFL level.
Learning from guys like Pickens, Van Jefferson, Quez Watkins, Scotty Miller, and Marquez Callaway will certainly help Wilson hit the ground running. Those names might not be all that exciting for the media and the fanbase, but they bring quite a bit of experience to the table, which will only help Wilson as he gets his feet wet in the NFL.
Landing with an organization like the Steelers that knows how to identify WR talent and develop it helps, too.
“Yeah, I mean, for me, it means a lot. Like you said, a lot of great guys who’ve been drafted here and played receiver, and it just means a lot for me to be mentioned in that group of guys already,” Wilson added.
The Steelers have had quite a bit of success drafting receivers in the last 15 years or so, uncovering gems like Antonio Brown and steady, dependable players like Emmanuel Sanders, Mike Wallace, Martavis Bryant, JuJu Smith-Schuster, Markus Wheaton, and more.
Roman Wilson could be the next wide receiver to join that group. Though he’s a polished route runner and brings a great deal of physicality and blocking abilities to the table, he still needs to develop more at the position, adding to his route tree and providing more from a success rate outside of work in the slot.
Excitement is high regarding Wilson, though, who reminds many of Hines Ward. We’ll see if he can live up to that comparison.
