Pittsburgh Steelers general manager Omar Khan made some big moves right before the trade deadline, acquiring wide receiver Mike Williams from the New York Jets and defensive end/outside linebacker Preston Smith from the Green Bay Packers. It seems like the Khan artist worked his magic again, grabbing two veteran playmakers for 2025 fifth- and seventh-round picks respectively.
Former quarterback and ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky spoke about Mike Williams’ fit with the Steelers on ESPN’s “NFL Trade Deadline” SportsCenter Special on Tuesday afternoon.
“I think it’s huge. I really do,” Orlovsky said. “I’m not trying to say that Mike Williams is 2020 Mike Williams, but Mike Williams is still a good player. He’s still making contested catches. There’s not going to be a ton of separation. Russell [Wilson] doesn’t care about that. Think about how much you can play the game between him and George Pickens. How much then can you play the game with him, George Pickens, Pat Freiermuth, or your run game.”
“If you give Mike [Tomlin] one deep ball shot a quarter, whether you hit it or not, the butterfly effect on your football team is massive. Defenses then have to constantly pay attention to it. The fear of that big explosive play transforming or changing the game. The threat of ‘If we don’t favor to that side then that’s going to be one-on-one.’ It makes it easier and [creates] more space for everyone else on that offense. This is a big deal, big, big deal for Pittsburgh when it comes to Mike Williams.”
Orlovsky championed Justin Fields throughout the season, consistently claiming he deserved to start over Russell Wilson. But over the last few weeks he’s come around with his opinion and he’s credited Wilson for his excellent play. Orlovsky analyzes quarterbacks about as well as anyone in the NFL media, so it’s fantastic to hear his full endorsement of Mike Williams’ fit with Wilson and the Steelers’ offense.
Like he said, Williams isn’t the receiver that he was at age 26 or 27 while playing for the Los Angeles Chargers, particularly before his recent ACL surgery. However, he can still go up and snag jump balls down the field. The Steelers don’t need or expect him to be a possession receiver getting seven or eight targets per game. Instead, he should open the field up with the threat of a few deep shots throughout the game, and he’s another big red-zone target for an offense that struggles to score seven from inside the 20-yard line.
George Pickens receives the majority of opposing secondaries’ attention, and adding Williams will make the job of safeties and outside cornerbacks that much harder. They’ll likely have to leave one of the two receivers in one-on-one coverage frequently, and both players are more than capable of winning those battles along the sideline.
Williams may only don the Black and Gold for just one season, but Omar Khan and Mike Tomlin are banking on a veteran talent who could potentially push the offense one step further. That, in turn, could lead to the Steelers’ first playoff win since 2016 and a chance for a seventh Lombardi Trophy.
