Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the last week, you won’t be surprised to hear that the Pittsburgh Steelers have been trying to trade for San Francisco 49ers WR Brandon Aiyuk. The saga has had its twists and turns over the last week, but right now, it looks like Aiyuk will either remain with the 49ers this season or get traded to Pittsburgh. Offensive coordinator Arthur Smith isn’t worried about the trade rumors though, calling it “wasted energy” to think about a potential outside addition.
“All I worry about is who I have,” Smith said Monday via Aaron Becker of Yardbarker on Twitter. “Those are things, like there’s a practical reality. It’s a lot of wasted energy. Everyone would like to have a perfect roster; it just doesn’t exist. You just deal with what the reality is, and like I said, I’ll coach whoever they bring in here. That’s our job and my job, more importantly, [is] to worry about the guys that are here and try to put them in the best spots.”
If Aiyuk does come to Pittsburgh, he’d be a massive upgrade at wide receiver and give the team another No. 1 option alongside George Pickens. Right now, Van Jefferson looks to be the leading candidate for that job. Jefferson has had a good camp and had a nice catch downfield in the preseason opener against the Texans.
The focus for Smith and the rest of the coaching staff is to get the group of guys they have right now ready for the season. While Aiyuk or another receiver would undoubtedly upgrade the room, acquiring him is a huge if and it doesn’t do any good thinking about it. Maximizing what Pittsburgh has in Jefferson, Calvin Austin III and Scotty Miller is going to make the group better come Week 1.
The Steelers are going to need one of those guys to step up and play better than they have in recent years, and at least for Jefferson and Miller, they have the benefit of playing under Smith in Atlanta. So it’s not as if Smith is unfamiliar with what they’re capable of, and he seems to feel comfortable enough with the group that Pittsburgh has.
It’s not a perfect group and it’s not a perfect roster, and it’s a bit of projection to count on any of them to serve as a reliable No. 2. But Smith utilizes the tight end often in his offense, so it’s not as if the Steelers’ No. 2 is going to be their second-leading target guy, as that will likely be TE Pat Freiermuth. It would be a huge upgrade for the offense if the Steelers do acquire Aiyuk, but it doesn’t do the team any good to think about that with the season just a few weeks away.
