The Pittsburgh Steelers have a need at wide receiver. They also have a lot of salary cap space heading into free agency. Thus, many fans feel as if the Steelers should spend a good bit of money at the position, which does have some available talent on the market. Steelers insider Mark Kaboly predicted the caliber of wide receiver the team will pursue in free agency.
“I think they’re going to go look for a nice, solid veteran guy,” Kaboly said Thursday on The Pat McAfee Show. “I’ll just throw names out there like Keenan Allen, obviously a guy like Christian Kirk. Those are guys that they would be interested in.”
Kirk may fit the profile that interests the Steelers, but he won’t be hitting the open market. The Jacksonville Jaguars traded him to the Houston Texans, a couple hours after Kaboly’s appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, in exchange for a 2026 seventh-round pick, per Dianna Russini.
Allen does make some sense for the Steelers. He’s getting up there in age — he turns 33 in late April — but had a productive season with the Chicago Bears last year despite all of their offensive struggles. He could be a good veteran presence for George Pickens.
Above all, the Steelers need depth at the position. Calvin Austin III had some nice moments in 2024. Yet, it doesn’t feel like he’s ready to become a true WR2. It’s something they have to address, and we know Omar Khan likes to fill out his roster before the draft rolls around.
While Kaboly expects the Steelers to gauge the market at wide receiver, he’s not expecting a high-priced signing.
“I don’t think they would be too interested in any of the higher-priced guys like [Chris] Godwin. I think they would be a little skeptical of anybody with injuries like that,” Kaboly said.
If there ever was an offseason to break the bank, it would be now. However, there is value behind Khan and the Steelers potentially taking the cheaper route. The upcoming NFL Draft has plenty of talented receivers. Pittsburgh also has an important looming decision regarding Pickens. Given all of that, it makes sense to aim for depth this offseason and push their need for an elite receiver into the future.
