The supporters of the Pittsburgh Steelers have been anticipating the team’s next wide receiver for almost a month.
On March 12, the team traded Diontae Johnson to the Panthers, creating a significant need at the position.
They still haven’t found a successor as of yet, but it looks like we might not have to wait until draft day to acquire that player.
The Steelers are “really trying to make something happen” at wide receiver, according to Audacy’s Jason La Canfora, who made this revelation during the April 9 edition of the podcast “In the Huddle.”
Do they trade for a wide receiver before the draft, in my opinion, is a piece of knowledge that we do not yet have. If that was what they did on the Wednesday before the draft, it wouldn’t surprise me if they repeated it tomorrow. I know they’re truly attempting to make anything happen there if they did it during working hours or in the lead-up to the draft on Thursday.
Before the offseason, the Steelers’ wide receiver situation appeared to be improving.
George Pickens had amassed 1140 yards in 2023, solidifying his status as a legitimate WR1.
Johnson, who appeared in the Pro Bowl in 2021 following a season in which he amassed 1000 yards, was a reliable option at wide receiver two.
All the team actually needed was a new wide receiver because Allen Robinson had a poor 2023—just 34 receptions for 280 yards—and was cut this offseason.
Pickens and the rest of the depth chart are separated significantly now that Robinson and Johnson are off the roster. The previous season, no other receiver on the team amassed 250 yards.
As a result, the team will undoubtedly be looking to add a wide receiver before the season begins, and it might even be a good idea to acquire a wide receiver.
The main problem is that there don’t seem to be many options available for trade at the moment.
Prospective Plans for the Steelers
It appears like there is basically only one option available to the Steelers if they want to make a significant acquisition at receiver before the draft.
The biggest name to surface as a potential trade target this offseason is Brandon Aiyuk, and if the Steelers want to make a significant move at the position, he is the most practical choice.
Currently in the final year of his rookie deal, Aiyuk is anticipated to receive a substantial salary on his next contract. The 49ers, meanwhile, have a very limited amount of cap space available.
In fact, Spotrac projects that they will exceed the cap by $30 million by 2025—and that’s before they even have Aiyuk on their books. Additionally, it excludes the rookie contracts that they will select in the 2024 draft.
