The Pittsburgh Steelers’ WR2 spot is up for grabs, even with the 2024 season right around the corner.
If they trade for Brandon Aiyuk, George Pickens will be able to take on that role. If they don’t, Pickens will remain the WR1, and there will be an internal battle for the second spot.
The seeming veteran frontrunner for the role is Van Jefferson, whom the Steelers signed this offseason. While he’s never had a real breakout over his four-year NFL career, he did post over 800 receiving yards in 2021, and there’s some confidence that he can at least be serviceable.
The other option, and probably the more exciting one, is rookie Roman Wilson. He impressed early in camp before spraining his ankle, which has sidelined him, and he may return to action before the preseason is over, per Steelers insider Gerry Dulac.
“He hurt his ankle, nothing serious, but he’ll probably be back for the last preseason game. But he hasn’t had a chance to play yet,” Dulac said Thursday on the Steve Jones Show. “They really like him. He’s a Hines Ward-type player. He loves contact, he’s not afraid to block, he makes contested catches. I couldn’t get over how slight of frame he was when I saw him. When I saw him the first day of camp, I didn’t even know he was one of the players. I thought he was one of the helpers or something.”
While Wilson isn’t the biggest guy, he makes up for it with his physicality. He lives by the mantra “no block, no rock” which is something that could be useful for a Steelers offense that is going to run the ball a ton.
Wilson was productive at Michigan but didn’t quite have the gaudy numbers you would expect from a prospect of his caliber. That was in large part due to Michigan’s run-heavy scheme, which is hardly a knock on Wilson.
The third preseason game is on Aug. 24, against the Detroit Lions. It could be what decides Wilson’s role going into 2024, or it could not matter so much after all. It wouldn’t be unheard of for Mike Tomlin to just default into selecting the veteran Van Jefferson for the WR2 role.
But if this team wants to compete in 2024, which it does, and Wilson is truly the best option, you have to put him out there. Even if his receiving skills don’t develop right away, he does enough other stuff that he’s going to at least help.
