Even the most casual observers of the Pittsburgh Steelers could probably tell you the weakest position on the roster is WR depth. It has been the talk of the offseason ever since Diontae Johnson was traded during the first week of free agency in March. George Pickens is set to be the impact receiver who carries most of the load, but who will help take attention away from him, or fill in if he happens to get injured?
So far, the answer has been to throw mud at the wall and see what sticks. The Steelers added Van Jefferson, Quez Watkins, and Scotty Miller in free agency, and then drafted Roman Wilson in the third round. They also have Calvin Austin III and some other practice squad players who will be competing for a role on the team.
General manager Omar Khan spoke about the wide receiver room during an appearance on 93.7 The Fan’s The PM Team and seems pleased with the overall direction the group is headed.
“We just finished minicamp and I was just talking to Coach T. and a couple of the other guys in my department, and we were just saying how good we felt about that room,” Khan said. “Just the growth from when the offseason program started to where we are now. Even the improvements from the start of OTAs to now has really been awesome to see.
“We like the group. We really, really do. And they’re working hard. This was an important OTA and minicamp for us. Got a lot of new faces on offense and just seeing how they jell together, how they worked, and I can just tell you, it’s trending really positively. It was awesome.”
Let’s be honest, was he really going to sit there and say it is a big problem? Probably not. But it can also be true that what he is saying is genuine and accurate. Each of the receivers I listed has potential. Scotty Miller had a good season with Tom Brady in Tampa Bay. Van Jefferson played a role on the Super Bowl-winning Los Angeles Rams team. Quez Watkins has 25 career starts and had a season back in 2021 with 647 receiving yards. Austin has been impressing his peers and coaches throughout OTAs and minicamp.
There remains a chance that the Steelers could add to their WR room. Khan wasn’t going to tip his hand in that regard, but he did mention that they cleared cap space via the Alex Highsmith contract restructure in order to be prepared to make a move if an opportunity came about, though he didn’t specifically say at the wide receiver position. That at least suggests they could be interested in an upgrade if the right situation presents itself or if the receivers don’t continue trending in the right direction during training camp.
For now, we have to operate under the assumption that the Steelers’ WR room will remain as it is, but that could change closer to roster cutdowns when several veteran players become available in September.
