Steelers ‘open to adding’ to WR room
What I heard from the Pittsburgh Steelers on Tuesday regarding their wide receiver position was encouraging.
Well, unless you’re one of the fans who is buying into the preemptive excuse-making as to why everything will be perfectly fine if the wide receiver depth chart stays just the way it is.
As if there’s really a depth chart beyond George Pickens anyway. Or is it just a random collection of barely recognizable names?
Most who root for (or cover) the Steelers agree that the roster is too thin at that position. Right now, it’s Pickens, third-round rookie Roman Wilson, and a bunch of fringe veterans — none of whom had more than 20 catches a year ago.
There is, however, a portion of fans, bloggers and media advancing the notion that concerns shouldn’t exist.
Of course, they don’t really believe this. They are just laying the foundation to fend off criticism of the franchise should it fail to add a legitimate, starting-caliber wide receiver to that position group before Week 1 against the Atlanta Falcons.
Those arguments usually go a little something like this:
• Roman Wilson is going to be a rookie standout and more than just the slot receiver some analysts say he is.
• Tight end Pat Freiermuth can essentially become the second wide receiver.
• Calvin Austin III is going to emerge. Some of their veteran acquisitions are underrated, and they can use Justin Fields as Taysom Hill.
• New offensive coordinator Arthur Smith’s offense doesn’t use a lot of threewide receiver sets anyway.
• Chill ‘aht! It’s only May, na’t!
As far as that last point goes, OK. Agreed. But unless a really big fish surprisingly enters the trade pond — or is released — the pickings have gotten awfully slim for impact pass catchers now that the draft and free agency have come and gone.
As for those first three arguments? They sound like more hope than a plan.
Meanwhile, I believe that other notion that Arthur Smith’s offense doesn’t need receiver depth because he doesn’t run a lot of threewide receiver sets is shortsighted.
That analysis is flawed because, even if Smith doesn’t run out of 1-1 personnel (one back, one tight end, three receivers) very often, the Steelers don’t even have a clearcut No. 2 receiver, let alone a third. Not to mention what kind of a predicament the offense would be in if Pickens gets hurt.
Furthermore, that line of thinking is now being refuted by the receivers themselves. On the first day of minicamp Tuesday, Wilson balked at the suggestion that Smith dilutes receiver snaps.
“No doubt, this offense definitely uses the receivers a lot,” Wilson said. “If you want to say as far as (minimizing 1-1 personnel) throwing the ball? The receivers are used a lot in the run game. … I’ve got no idea what he is going to do. But I’m going to be ready for it.”
Scotty Miller, who came to Pittsburgh this offseason after playing for Smith last year in Atlanta, gets the sense that his former head coach may be willing to expand the menu for the receivers in Pittsburgh.
“In Atlanta, we had a lot of tight ends — Jonnu Smith, Kyle Pitts,” Miller said. “I think they wanted to get them on the field, which limits how many receivers we can have out there.”
Conversely, in Pittsburgh, during the 2023 season, after starting tight end Pat Freiermuth, Connor Heyward averaged the most receiving yards per game among tight ends at just 9.8, totaling only 167 for the year.
Pickens expects Smith to evolve as the NFL evolves.
“You probably didn’t see it in Tennessee. You probably didn’t see it in Atlanta. But the game is changing so much overall,” Pickens said. “You’ve got new rules on defense — the hip-drop tackle. As the game is changing, different plays are coming about too, for offensive coordinators. I could see him doing a lot more college-themed things, which is space and getting open. That’s going to work.”
It certainly sounds like head coach Mike Tomlin is leaving the door open for the Steelers to acquire somebody else at the position.
“We’re always open to adding, not only to that group, but any group,” Tomlin said Tuesday when I asked him if the team might still consider acquiring a receiver. “That is our mentality. But I would imagine that that’s the mentality of those that we compete against as well. We continually try to get better in all areas.”
That’s 100% the right answer. They should consider it. Strongly. Even if it means overpaying a little bit in terms of draft picks for next year.
And, as we all know, those who are making a case as to why the Steelers don’t need to get another receiver in May will lavish them with praise in August if they figure out a way to make a trade happen. That’s just the way it works.
Just like how an NFL offense in 2024 works much better if you can field three capable wide receivers at a time.
