Any wide receiver interested in signing with the Pittsburgh Steelers is going to want to know who is throwing him the ball. On the other end, who is under center could impact the type of receiver the franchise wants to pursue. General manager Omar Khan laid out the Steelers’ QB domino effect during a Tuesday meeting with the media.
“An ideal scenario, you’d like to have this done before the start of the league year,” Khan told reporters, including our Joe Clark, of the timeline to solidify the quarterback situation. “Obviously, that impact who you sign impacts the type of receiver you may go after or how you build the rest of the team. So, all that has an effect.”
Quarterback remains the Steelers’ biggest storyline and will be until a decision gets made. Khan has echoed the organization’s sentiment of wanting to re-sign Justin Fields or Russell Wilson but with both heading to unrestricted free agency, there’s no guarantee either will return.
Right behind quarterback, wide receiver is one of the team’s most glaring needs. Pittsburgh never adequately replaced Diontae Johnson after trading him nearly one year ago, striking out on several trade attempts before landing the New York Jets’ Mike Williams at the deadline. He caught just nine passes in nine games. Fortunately, the veteran pool of receivers is expected to be deep coupled with potential cap causalities and trade options like the San Francisco 49ers’ Deebo Samuel and Los Angeles Rams’ Cooper Kupp.
Knowing if it’s Wilson or Fields – or someone else – at QB will dictate the type of receiver the Steelers pursue. Wilson is a moon ball, sideline thrower while Fields works more underneath routes.
As Khan noted, getting a QB under contract before the new league year on March 12 is ideal for the Steelers. Everything else is essentially on hold until that problem gets solved. After that, wide receiver and the rest of the Steelers’ needs can be addressed in what’s another critical offseason for the franchise to move forward.
