Mark Kaboly threw up the impending Pittsburgh Steelers news bat signal with his ever-vague “yeet” tweet as he tends to do. He (partially) clarified what he was referring to during this morning’s episode of Kaboly + Mack. It seems that the Steelers might be after WR help in the next week or two leading up to the season.
His co-host Chris Mack asked if the vague tweet meant news is coming.
“I don’t think any time within the next week, but something might be coming down the pike here,” Kaboly said. “I’ll put it this way, I would not be shocked within the next 10 to 12 days that they add a receiver. I was under the impression that they’re just gonna play it out like they were right now. We have [Roman] Wilson, [Calvin] Austin [III], we’re going with that. I was pretty much sure of that. I don’t know if I’m as sure of that anymore.”
He was asked about a number of players in specific. Terry McLaurin? “You’re in the ballpark, but you’re in the wrong section.”
Odell Beckham Jr.? “Close.”
He didn’t say anything when asked about Amari Cooper.
The Steelers have long been rumored to have interest in adding to their WR room. The only time that cooled off was when they briefly had both DK Metcalf and George Pickens on the roster. But the Pickens trade ramped the speculation back up.
GM Omar Khan told 102.5 DVE yesterday that he still feels “really good” about the Steelers’ receiving corps. But he also hinted at a wait-and-see approach at safety at the beginning of camp before signing Chuck Clark just a few days later.
Looming over this entire conversation is the fact that the team’s No. 2 WR has not practiced since Friday Night Lights on Aug. 1. Calvin Austin III has been labeled as day to day with an undisclosed injury, but Mike Tomlin has been using increasingly vague language when asked about him.
Kaboly was asked if his vague tweet is a reflection of someone the Steelers are talking to or a reflection of Austin’s injury.
“Probably both to a degree,” he said.
He has been talking about the idea of adding a receiver for months, but came to the conclusion that top targets were “long gone” from the Steelers’ radar. Cooper was one of the top names he talked about at the time. Reading between the lines, his tweet might suggest a renewed interest in a notable name such as Cooper. And he’s the only name Kaboly didn’t respond to when asked.
For a possible timeline, Kaboly mentioned roster cutdowns on Aug. 26. But he is strongly suggesting their interest is currently focused on the receiver position.
“The yeet is that I was not under the impression that they were interested in a receiver, but now that might have changed,” he said.
Stay tuned over the next week or two, and pay close attention to whether Austin returns for any preseason action. If he doesn’t it sounds like the Steelers are preparing to make one last notable move.
