The Pittsburgh Steelers’ 2024 rookie class had a lot of key contributors last year. However, they also lost some promising players due to injury, such as Troy Fautanu and Roman Wilson. Now, both players are healthy, and they figure to be big parts of the Steelers’ offense. Wilson, in particular, has an opportunity to carve out a role for himself if he has a strong performance in training camp. Mike Tomlin recently gave his assessment of Wilson’s play so far.
“He’s shown really good adaptability and position flex,” Tomlin said Thursday via the team’s website. “We’re still very much early in the process, but I like some of the things I’ve seen from him.”
In training camp, the Steelers have moved Wilson around, playing as an inside and outside receiver. Coming out of college, he profiled more as a slot guy. However, Calvin Austin III figures to have that role with the Steelers. Their team needs another starter on the outside opposite DK Metcalf.
So far, Wilson looks to be in the lead for that job. Considering the rest of the Steelers’ depth at wideout, that isn’t surprising. The Steelers’ offense has had a sluggish start to training camp, but Wilson has made a few plays as things progress. There’s no need to read into that too much, but it’s a sign that Wilson is trying to step up.
Wilson’s position flexibility could also earn him a lot of favor with the Steelers. That’s something that Tomlin and Omar Khan value highly. Austin could be the Steelers’ number two receiver, but he isn’t as suited to play on the outside as Wilson.
The preseason should be a good opportunity to gauge Wilson’s progress. Tomlin is pleased with some of the things he’s seen out of the young receiver so far. If he can stack a few good practices and stay healthy, the Steelers’ offense could be in a much better place entering this season.
Wide receiver is one of their biggest weaknesses, so having Wilson step up would be a nice boon for them. Despite not getting much of a rookie season, the Steelers will look for Wilson to be a positive contributor.
