As training camp has progressed, the Pittsburgh Steelers’ offense has continued to improve. However, the Steelers still have questions at wide receiver. They traded for DK Metcalf in March, giving them a proven WR1, but there’s not much depth behind him. That’s led to speculation that the Steelers could make another trade for a receiver. Terry McLaurin of the Washington Commanders recently requested a trade, making him a possible target. Ryan Wilson recently drew up a trade package for the Steelers to acquire McLaurin.
“George Pickens is gone, no clear-cut number two has stepped up,” Wilson said recently on CBS Sports HQ. “They drafted Roman Wilson last year out of Michigan. He had an injury, didn’t play much at all as a rookie. This year, he’s been up and down in training camp.
“Here’s what we’re doing, getting a number two wide receiver for the Steelers. A 2026 second-round pick, a 2026 fourth rounder, and we’ll give you Roman Wilson, Washington. You’ll feel great about that.”
McLaurin has been with the Commanders since 2019, and during that time, he’s grown into one of the most consistent receivers in the league. Despite Washington’s issues at quarterback, McLaurin has posted at least 1,000 receiving yards in each of his last five seasons. Last year, with quality play under center, McLaurin had one of his best seasons yet, catching 82 passes for 1,096 yards and 13 touchdowns.
If the Steelers acquired him their offense would suddenly become much more lethal. McLaurin and Metcalf could be one of the best wide receiver duos in the league. Trading for him would finally solve the Steelers’ questions at receiver.
However, that’s easier said than done. Wilson’s proposal is a steep price to pay. The Steelers only traded a second-round pick for Metcalf, and he’s younger than McLaurin. Adding another draft pick and Wilson to the equation feels like a lot.
During that same segment, former NFL general manager Ran Carthon weighed in on Wilson’s proposal.
“This would be a deal that I would do, even with just the picks, the second and the fourth,” Carthon said. “I do think the right value for a Terry McLaurin in a trade right now would probably be a third-round pick. To be able to get a second-round pick and a fourth-round pick off of it is something that you’d want to do.”
It sounds like Carthon agrees that the Steelers would be overpaying for McLaurin with Wilson’s deal. While sending a third-round pick to the Commanders for McLaurin sounds like a good deal, it’s a little more complicated than that.
The Commanders don’t want to trade McLaurin. He requested a trade because he’s in the middle of a contract dispute with them. If the Steelers traded for McLaurin, they’d have to give him a deal similar to what they gave Metcalf when they acquired him.
That makes it much harder to get a trade done. The Steelers would love to have McLaurin. However, the Commanders need to want to trade the two-time Pro Bowler for that to happen. At the moment, it seems like they’re trying to work on way to keep McLaurin. If they can’t get a deal done, perhaps the Steelers will be willing to pony up the draft capital and cash required in a trade. It doesn’t seem likely, though.
