The Pittsburgh Steelers have had a very loud offseason. They added key pieces to the defense along with completely rebuilding their quarterback room. A lot of the free agency moves have been at the wide receiver position. Here is what the Steelers might be planning for 2024.
2024 Pittsburgh Steelers Offseason
The Pittsburgh Steelers have added a lot of new faces this offseason along with losing some. The Steelers signed key starters like Patrick Queen and Russel Wilson. They also made a trade for Justin Feilds and traded away Kenny Pickett. Another move the Steelers made was trading Dionte Johnson to the Carolina Panthers.
Good-bye, Dionte Johnson
Johnson had been one of the Steelers’ top receivers since he was drafted in 2019. He has only had one season over 1,000 yards but has had over 700 yards in each year of his career. The Pittsburgh Steelers signed Johnson to a two-year $36 million extension in 2022. Johnson was a great receiver for Pittsburgh but never lived up to the top-tier number-one wide receiver pay he was getting. Being in the last year of his contract, the Steelers traded him to the Panthers for a corner and a pick swap.
This left a massive gap at the receiver position for Pittsburgh. With George Pickens showing he can be the number one option and Calvin Austin showing flashes of potential, the Steelers are missing a wide receiver number two. Therefore, the Pittsburgh Steelers have made some signings during the offseason.
Steelers New Wide Receivers
The Pittsburgh Steelers have made three main signings at the wide receiver position. Most of them look to fit the same build and it seems like the Steelers are building something different for the 2024 season. After trading Johnson, it appeared that the Steelers were going to fill the spot in free agency or draft a new receiver. Instead of making one or two signings to fill the gap, they have made three signings that seem out of the ordinary.
Van Jefferson
The first wide receiver signing the Steelers made was Van Jefferson. Jefferson is 27 years old and hasn’t really lived up to his second-round pedigree. He was on the Rams for his first four seasons and put up over 800 yards in his sophomore season. In 2023, Jefferson was traded to the Atlanta Falcons where he only had 100 yards receiving. While Jefferson could be a potential starter for the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2024, it doesn’t seem he fills that WR2 gap.
Quez Watkins
Then the Steelers made another interesting signing in Quez Watkins. Watkins has played the deep threat role for the Eagles similar to what Jefferson did for the Rams. In his four seasons with Philly, he accumulated over 1,200 yards and six touchdowns. While Watkins can be a nice speedy gadget player for Pittsburgh, they already have that kind of player in Calvin Austin.
Cordarrelle Patterson
The final signing the Steelers made was the 33-yard-old Cordarrelle Patterson. With the new kickoff rules coming into effect in 2024 the Steelers found themselves a return man. Out of the three signings, this one makes the most sense. In the past years, Patterson has converted from a wide receiver to more of a running back/return man and should be a good returner for the Steelers in 2024.
After all these signings, the Steelers still have a gap at their second wide receiver spot. While they have added a lot of depth and speed, they haven’t added that reliable target. At this point in free agency, it seems unlikely they will be able to fill the hole. Therefore, Pittsburgh will probably look to draft one of the top receivers in the draft.
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