As the longest-tenured Pittsburgh Steeler, defensive lineman Cam Heyward usually has an ear to the big moves the team makes. He’s often part of the recruiting pitch, reaching out to QB Russell Wilson and CB Darius Slay in the past. But even he was kept in the dark about the DK Metcalf trade, a deal that seemingly came out of nowhere. Not that Heyward is mad about the outcome.
On his Not Just Football Podcast, Heyward gave the deal two thumbs up.
“We were looking for a wide receiver last year after losing Diontae [Johnson],” Heyward told co-host Hayden Walsh. “We struck out on [Brandon] Aiyuk. But now to get a guy like DK, I think that only elevates the room. You got another big dude in there that likes combat catches. Has got breakaway speed. He’s a monster in the run game, too. He likes to block.
“He plays pissed off. I think we welcome on that offensive side of the ball. A lot of guys can feed off that. I think he can lead the group and be real responsible for winning some big games.”
Heyward briefly mentioned the Metcalf trade last week during a live taping of his podcast but these were his first complete comments about the move. They’re all words you’d expect to hear and even for a defensive player, there’s a sense of relief of Pittsburgh finally landing a big-play wide receiver following the Aiyuk saga of last summer, weeks of speculation and reporting that only ended with him re-upping with the San Francisco 49ers.
There was no such drama with Metcalf. Pittsburgh barely even rumored as a possible landing spot, the news broke with the trade being agreed to the Sunday evening before free agency. Pittsburgh sent the Seattle Seahawks second- and seventh-round picks for Metcalf and a sixth, giving him a record $150 million deal in the process.
With Metcalf the clear No. 1 receiver in the room, taking over George Pickens’ 2024 role, Heyward thinks the pair can co-exist and make the entire offense more effective.
“I think they can be really, really good,” Heyward said. “I think they both bring the ability to catch in tight circumstances. If it’s a 50/50 ball, I feel like both of them are coming down 90/10 balls. It’s going to be nice to have both of those guys. And you can’t stack the box now. You really can’t. Your run game opens up, the middle of the field opens up for a guy like Pat Freiermuth.”
Whether or not Pickens feels as optimistic about the trade remains to be seen. But should he remain on roster, the Steelers will have a dynamic downfield duo. As Heyward says, teams will have to play two-high shells to take away vertical throws, emptying the box to energize the running game. On paper, it all looks good. Now Pittsburgh just needs a quarterback to get them the ball.
