Especially throughout Kevin Colbert’s tenure as the Pittsburgh Steelers’ general manager, there was a pretty strong narrative that the team was elite at drafting and developing wide receivers. They always seemed to have a strong receiving corps, and even when they would move on from one, there were two or three ready to step up and take their place. Lately, Steelers receivers have shared the same fate. From Antonio Brown to now George Pickens, they were all traded.
Here is a full breakdown of notable Steelers wide receivers over the last two decades and their shared fate of eventually being traded.
Santonio Holmes
After a suspension and an overall troubled past off the field, the Steelers surprisingly traded the hero of Super Bowl XLIII. The team’s first-round pick in the 2006 NFL Draft, Holmes never got a second contract in Pittsburgh and was traded to the New York Jets in 2010.
Trade Compensation:
– Steelers: 2010 fifth-round pick
– Jets: WR Santonio Holmes
Martavis Bryant
Bryant burst onto the scene as a rookie and looked to be the latest Steelers WR gem, but frequent substance abuse violations led to suspensions. He ended up in Pittsburgh for five seasons because one of the suspensions tolled his contract through 2018. The Steelers’ 2014 fourth-round pick flamed out in Pittsburgh (and in the NFL) but offered good return on the trade market.
Trade Compensation:
– Steelers: 2018 third-round pick
– Raiders: WR Martavis Bryant
Antonio Brown
After one of the best WR careers of all time and nine seasons with the Steelers, his antics on and off the field became too much to stomach and he eventually requested his way out of town. As a sixth-round pick in 2010, Brown was one of Colbert’s greatest draft successes. Due to his hefty contract (at the time) and the character concerns, he didn’t fetch a king’s ransom on the trade market. The (then) Oakland Raiders traded for Brown and never even got a game out of him as the seven-time Pro Bowler forced his way out in Vegas.
Trade Compensation:
– Steelers: 2019 third-round pick, 2019 fifth-round pick
– Raiders: WR Antonio Brown
Chase Claypool
As the Steelers’ top pick in the 2020 NFL Draft in the second round (because of the Minkah Fitzpatrick trade), Claypool was a height, weight and speed prospect who quickly made an impact in Pittsburgh as a rookie with 873 receiving yards and nine TDs. He regressed over the next couple seasons and was eventually traded to the Chicago Bears in the middle of the 2022 season for what ended up being the top pick in the second round of the 2023 NFL Draft. Claypool is now a free agent and hasn’t stuck anywhere since leaving Pittsburgh.
Trade Compensation:
– Steelers: 2023 second-round pick
– Bears: WR Chase Claypool
Diontae Johnson
Diontae Johnson is one of the few on this list to get a second contract from the team. A Steelers third-round selection in the 2019 NFL Draft — the pick was acquired in the Antonio Brown trade — Johnson turned into a Pro Bowl receiver. He only made it one year into his two-year extension before some maturity issues on and off the field made the situation untenable.
Trade Compensation:
– Steelers: CB Donte Jackson, 2024 sixth-round pick
– Panthers: WR Diontae Johnson, 2024 seventh-round pick
George Pickens
Pickens is the latest star receiver to get traded by the Steelers. He was the team’s 2022 second-round pick and quickly became its top receiver. He never had the ideal offense in Pittsburgh, including an inconsistent quarterback situation, and that held him back from breaking out as a true top receiver in the league. The Cowboys will now take over the final year of his rookie contract before he becomes one of the top free agents next year.
Trade Compensation:
– Steelers: 2026 third-round pick, 2027 fifth-round pick
– Cowboys: WR George Pickens, 2027 sixth-round pick
Reflecting on this long list, the Steelers got the better end of all of those trades. The jury will be out on the Pickens deal for quite some time, but a third-round pick next year is decent return as the Steelers stockpile 2026 draft capital.
