When thinking about which wide receiver the Steelers should extend in 2025, Calvin Austin III isn’t the name that usually comes to mind. However, Steelers insider Mark Kaboly seems open to the possibility.
In a recent appearance on 93.7 The Fan, Kaboly singled out Austin as a name that Pittsburgh should look to keep around as a core piece of the WR room moving forward.
“I mean, Calvin Austin’s a guy that maybe you look at,” said Kaboly when talking about potential extension candidates. “He only has 30 career catches. You don’t want him to hit free agency after next year, but I don’t want to pay him right now either.”
Austin had a breakout year in 2024 by his standards, setting career-highs in catches, yards, touchdowns and pretty much everything else. Outside of George Pickens, he was pretty much the only other receiver able to separate routinely. Giving Austin a contract now would ensure a cheap, cost controlled WR3/4 in the future, but more signs of growth are likely needed before giving him any guarantees.
Before we get to 2026, let’s first focus on the wide receiver room in 2025. According to Kaboly, his final wide receiver preference for 2025 rounds out to be Pickens, Deebo Samuel, Roman Wilson, Austin and a 2025 first-round pick.
That would be a much more talented and crowded room than the year prior, but Kaboly still thinks Austin should be part of the future regardless.
“Hopefully Roman Wilson, Calvin Austin and whoever they draft this year, preferably in the first round, would be the wide receiver group of the future,” Kaboly said.
I think we learned last year that Austin probably isn’t a No. 2 WR, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t a valuable complementary piece for the Steelers to have on the team. He has 4.32 speed and is a plus contributor in the punt return game. There is also the leadership aspect of having Austin around. Roman Wilson called him the leader of the WR room last offseason. Russell Wilson praised Austin and said he was the biggest star of the 2024 season for the Steelers.
He is clearly somebody that is held in high regard in that building, and he could be a cheap building block to have some veteran continuity in that room.
