Just hours after it was reported that the Pittsburgh Steelers were trading WR George Pickens to the Dallas Cowboys, a potential replacement emerged with a report by ESPN’s Adam Schefter that the Jacksonville Jaguars have released WR Gabe Davis.
Davis signed a three-year, $39 million contract with the Jaguars last offseason, but his stint in Jacksonville lasted just 10 games. He caught 20 passes for 239 yards with the Jaguars, but he had more success with the Buffalo Bills over the first four seasons of his NFL career.
He went over the 500-yard mark in every season he was with the Bills, including a career-best 48 receptions for 836 yards and seven touchdowns in 2022. That season, the Steelers got an up-close look at Davis as a deep threat, as he caught a 98-yard touchdown against Pittsburgh in a 38-3 Week 5 blowout win.
He also had one of the best playoff performances for a wide receiver of all time, when he caught 10 passes for 201 yards and four touchdowns in Buffalo’s 42-36 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2021 AFC Championship Game.
Davis just turned 26 years old, and while not a perfect replacement for Pickens, he does offer upside as a deep threat and would be an upgrade right now for the Steelers as a No. 2 wideout. If the Steelers are serious about competing in 2025, it would make sense if they looked to bolster their receiver room in the wake of the Pickens trade. And Davis now represents one of the best available options.
His former teammate, C Mitch Morse, who retired this offseason and played with Davis in both Buffalo and Jacksonville, sang his praises and called him a great culture guy.
“Absolute tone setter in the locker room and on the field. PERFECT culture guy. Played hurt all last year, didn’t complain about it once… having a tough time wrapping my head around this one,” Morse wrote on Twitter.
Most of the best receivers available in free agency are on the back end of their career, with Amari Cooper and Keenan Allen also available. Davis, while coming off an injury-plagued season that didn’t live up to expectations in Jacksonville, does offer upside given that he’s still young and has big-play ability that could benefit Pittsburgh’s offense.
He also offers positional flexibility, as he can line up in the slot or outside. With the Jaguars last season, he had 331 snaps out wide and 73 in the slot. He also registered over 100 slot snaps in both 2022 and 2023. Pittsburgh recently signed WR Robert Woods, who gives the team flexibility to play both positions, and while Calvin Austin III and Roman Wilson look to be primary slot receivers, adding players who can line up anywhere on offense would be beneficial for Pittsburgh.
The offense is worse off right now without Pickens, but the Steelers did secure future draft capital and it would certainly lessen the blow of trading him if the team continues to add to its wide receivers room. Gabe Davis could wind up being a nice pickup at a solid value, as he likely won’t command much money after being released and he’s proven in Buffalo that he can be a viable No. 2 option.
