The news came quickly Tuesday morning as Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Davante Adams was reportedly traded to the New York Jets, causing the trade market at the wide receiver position to shift swiftly.
While the Pittsburgh Steelers missed out on an Adams trade, which wasn’t a surprise at all, the need remains at wide receiver for the Black and Gold as Pittsburgh is having real issues with players behind George Pickens stepping up and being consistent producers.
Though Adams was the big fish, there are still plenty of talented receivers who could be available via trade ahead of the Nov. 5 trade deadline. One of those players is Carolina Panthers wide receiver Adam Thielen, a player CBS Sports’ Cody Benjamin believes is one the Steelers should make a move for.
“The Steelers have been sniffing around blockbuster wideouts this year, from Adams to Brandon Aiyuk, but there are an abundance of lower-tier alternatives who could be available. Thielen is one, coming off an injury at 34 for the Panthers’ stuck-in-mud rebuild,” Benjamin writes for CBSSports.com. “He’s got a much lower ceiling than a playmaker like Adams, but when healthy, he’s remained one of the NFL’s most sure-handed possession targets, making him a logical partner for the more explosive George Pickens in Pittsburgh’s otherwise old-school attack.”
Thielen certainly isn’t a needle mover, especially at 34 years old and coming off of a hamstring injury that has caused him to miss the last three games while on Injured Reserve.
Prior to the injury, Thielen struggled to get going in the Panthers’ offense, which made a QB change from Bryce Young to Andy Dalton quickly. On the year, Thielen has eight receptions for 109 yards and a touchdown in three games.
In those three games, Thielen graded out at a 63.7 overall from Pro Football Focus, while aligning in the slot 73% of the time for the Panthers. He has one drop on the season but is two-for-two in contested-catch situations.
Last season, his first with the Panthers, Thielen hauled in 103 receptions for 1,014 yards and four touchdowns, grading out at a 72.7 overall from PFF. In his career, Thielen has 645 receptions for 7,805 yards and 71 touchdowns and was quite the story for much of his career with the Minnesota Vikings, going from a rookie minicamp tryout player to a star receiver in his home state.
Thielen signed a three-year, $25 million deal with the Panthers as a free agent ahead of the 2023 season and has one year remaining on his deal after the 2024 season.
The Panthers sit at 1-5 on the year. As the rebuild continues in Carolina, Thielen could be moved, and profiles as a cheap, dependable pass catcher, one who could produce in a new setting. That would be an intriguing add for the Steelers, especially if he’s cheap from a trade-capital standpoint.
