I feel like Charlie Brown trusting Lucy to kick the football only to be fooled again and again, but this time, I really mean it. Rookie WR Roman Wilson might finally get to make his NFL debut. With injuries piling up and the Pittsburgh Steelers needing receiver depth for Sunday’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders, all signs logically point to Wilson being active for Sunday’s game.
With the Steelers using their two practice squad elevations this week on RB Jonathan Ward and EDGE Eku Leota, the team will need seven inactives. But many of those spots will be occupied by injured players. Five names on the 53 have already been ruled out for tomorrow’s game, guaranteeing they’ll be inactive. EDGE Nick Herbig (hamstring), S Damontae Kazee (ankle), EDGE Alex Highsmith (groin), RB/KR Cordarrelle Patterson (ankle), and TE MyCole Pruitt (knee) were listed as ‘out’ on the Steelers’ final injury report. So check those names off the list.
That leaves just two other inactive spots. One will go to the third-string/emergency quarterback, presumably Kyle Allen, with Russell Wilson healthy and appearing to be the No. 2 for this game. The last spot will probably go to an offensive lineman like Max Scharping. The team always dresses eight, and Scharping is odd-man-out as No. 9, an interior player behind starters Isaac Seumalo, Zach Frazier, Mason McCormick, and backups Ryan McCollum and Spencer Anderson.
I’ll leave it to Dave Bryan to release his official inactive predictions list later today, but it’s reasonable to believe that’s the group.
Even beyond that point, which seems ironclad enough, the Steelers have dressed either four receivers and a quasi-fifth in Cordarrelle Patterson or five “true” receivers all season. For the first four weeks, it was the former, Patterson wearing multiple hats thanks to his versatility as runner/receiver/returner. It gave Pittsburgh much-needed roster flexibility. With Patterson out last week, the team elevated WR Brandon Johnson to be their fifth-string receiver, logging five snaps and catching one pass for 9-yards.
This weekend, Pittsburgh opted against elevating Johnson. And they reasonably could have. Leota was needed to help round out the team’s outside linebacker depth, but Ward was a bit more luxury. With RB Jaylen Warren deemed healthy, Pittsburgh had three running backs. Ward plays a role on special teams and starts on the punt coverage unit, but if they had kept him on the practice squad, they could’ve made it work. They could have played Shampklin there, for example, who regularly worked on the punt team during training camp.
This means that they need to have five receivers available for this game. We know the top four: George Pickens, Van Jefferson, Calvin Austin III, and Scotty Miller. Wilson is the only option to be the fifth. There’s no Patterson or Johnson or any other option to consider.
Before you go putting Roman Wilson into your fantasy football lineup, how much Wilson will play remains to be seen. Truthfully, it probably won’t be a lot. He’s still the No. 5 receiver, and in Johnson’s case last week, that led to only a handful of snaps. Pittsburgh may have a certain personnel grouping for him to work in, limiting his menu of plays and what’s on his plate. Largely, he’s still shaping up to be depth and injury protection, but not much more.
But a debut is a debut. If he can take advantage of however many snaps he gets, it could lead to more. And it’ll at least be an important box to check, though he may find himself inactive again once Patterson gets healthy. That’s a discussion for another day.
Waiting six weeks for Wilson to make his debut was frustrating. For him more than anyone else. But it’s understandable as a rookie who missed virtually the entire summer and was injured on the first day of padded practice. Crucial team development time missed and the lost opportunity of earning the coaching staff’s trust. It’s a moving train that takes time to catch.
And if Roman Wilson can’t dress despite all the team’s injuries and the seemingly obvious path for him to get a hat this game? Oh boy, there might be some problems. But looking at the roster, that would be a serious surprise.
UPDATE (2:38 PM): Wilson will play against the Raiders, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports.
