As bad as the Pittsburgh Steelers offense looks right now, adding a wide receiver like Davante Adams can turn things completely around. That’s what Ben Roethlisberger thinks Adams can offer the Steelers if GM Omar Khan can beat the odds and land him. On the latest episode of his Footbahlin podcast, Roethlisberger weighed in on the chances of the Steelers landing Adams and what it would do for their Super Bowl hopes.
“Davante Adams is arguably the best in the game right now,” Roethlisberger said, recapping the team’s loss to the Dallas Cowboys. “He’s an absolute animal…If he comes here with George, watch out. Here we go. New Orleans, we might be coming.”
Adams would give Pittsburgh two top-flight talent wide receivers on the outside. The Steelers need more from George Pickens himself, but adding a player of Adams’ caliber would take some of the heat off. It could also help open up the run game, or if teams want to continue stacking the box, it would create 1-on-1 chances on the outside for the offense to hit.
Roethlisberger’s concern was how realistic the Steelers’ acquisition of Adams would be and whether Pickens would remain a Steeler under that scenario.
“Are you getting rid of George?…My point is, if you’re getting rid of George and Davante comes, you’re still in the same boat that’s sinking, and you need a No. 2 receiver.”
That’s an accurate point, but not one on the table. Aside from a Dianna Russini musing, there’s no indication the Steelers plan on trading away Pickens. And they wouldn’t do that as part of a deal for Adams, a 32-year-old receiver who will take up plenty of cap space. However, there would be a fair conversation about whether Pittsburgh would pay Pickens after this season if they landed and restructured Adams’ contract, keeping him with the team beyond 2024. Landing Adams would take a Day Two selection, possibly a second-round pick.
“Those two would be a crazy tandem,” Roethlisberger said of pairing Pickens and Adams. “They would be really good, and you could do a lot of things. And you’re gonna open up the run game because now you’re scared of the pass game.”
The Steelers aren’t considered frontrunners for Adams, and his preference seems to be to reunite with QB Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets. Last night, however, it showed the need for Pittsburgh to add more weapons and give this offense every outlet possible to succeed.
Roethlisberger believing that would transform the Steelers into Super Bowl contenders is too strong a statement, but it might be what jumpstarts this offense and gets them back on track as one of the top ten teams in the league, something they were viewed as the first three weeks of the year.
