The Draft is almost here, and the rumor mill is churning out solid gold. There are trade rumors, signing prospects, and gaping holes in teams’ rosters that demand to be filled at the earliest. Front offices across the league are busy reshuffling depth charts and crunching cap space—but in Mike Tomlin’s world, the wheels never stop turning. One trade in, one star player on the fence, and another name swirling in the rumor mill. It’s not just about strategy anymore—it’s about timing. And if the chatter out of Pittsburgh holds weight, the Steelers may be quietly setting the stage for one of the boldest wide receiver moves of the year.
The Steelers have already traded for D.K. Metcalf from the Seahawks. After not being re-signed for 2025, RB Najee Harris has moved to the Chargers. Former Eagles RB and kickoff returner Kenneth Gainwell has joined on a one-year contract. While there is still no absolute decision on their starting quarterback front – or any confirmation from Aaron Rodgers – Mike Tomlin is looking to fill some gaps in the wide receiver positions, with one of his players raring to leave. Entering his contract year, the Steelers are yet to offer a deal for George Pickens, and the whispers on the grapevine are that he might get traded.
Kristopher Knox from the Bleacher Report has called out some receivers who might get traded before the new season starts. One prominent name among them is Pickens. According to Knox, “Teams that miss out on a top receiver prospect on opening night and have the cap space to extend Pickens should be interested in making an offer. – Ironically, the Seahawks could be among those teams. Seattle have Kupp but traded Metcalf and released Tyler Lockett. They could use another receiver to help support new quarterback Sam Darnold.”
Why the Seahawks? Well, the Seahawks have made some major changes to their roster this offseason. They’ve released WR Tyler Lockett to fend for himself in free agency, traded away WR D.K. Metcalf as mentioned above, and sent QB Geno Smith to the Raiders. In their place, now they have QB Sam Darnold and WR Cooper Kupp signed from free agency.
There’s still a missing piece in their offense, and that piece could very well be George Pickens. There are many reasons for this. Frisman Jackson, receiver coach for the Seahawks, could have a very good synergy with Pickens. Frisman was the receiver coach with the Steelers back in 2023. Context? 2023 was Pickens’ best season ever, with 1,140 yards despite having the team’s shaky QB situation.
Pickens himself hasn’t been very happy with the Steelers recently as per reports. If the Steelers trade George Pickens, they face a major decision. Who will take his place?
Pickens’ Steelers looking at Swift?
Yup, at this point, it’s still a question mark for the Steelers in terms of who they will sign wide out if they really decide to let George Pickens go. But one name that’s churning in the rumor mill for a different need is the $24M running back for the Chicago Bears, D’Andre Swift. Technically, running backs are “receivers” too. As per Sterling Xie of Pro Football Network, the Steelers would be an ideal fit for Swift, if the Bears decide to trade him. “Although Bears head coach Ben Johnson coached D’Andre Swift in Detroit, it feels like Swift could use a change of scenery – Swift still has two years left on the three-year, $24 million deal he signed last offseason. – the Bears would want to wait until after June 1 to trade Swift. By doing so, they’d save $8 million in cap room and take on a minuscule $1.3 million dead cap hit the next two years.”
D’Andre Swift is coming off a bad year, and honestly, that’s putting it lightly. His 2024 season performance was a career-worst. And a change of scenery might just be what the doctor ordered, because he’s not a bad player. If his previous seasons are any indication, he has what it takes to shine. But there are other pieces on the board for the Steelers too, aside from Swift.
If they draft the young blood that’s on the board, Matthew Golden and Quinn Ewers could solve their WR as well as QB needs. The Steelers have considered this, too, as they’ve met up personally with both of them. On the other hand, Bleacher Report’s James Palmer has indicated Jayden Higgins of Iowa State could also work very well with the Steelers. Emeka Egbuka is another WR name that has been mentioned in tandem with the Steelers’ needs.
While there are many seemingly perfect additions for the Steelers, it’s up to Mike Tomlin and the front office. Which way they will go and how it will affect their team dynamics – we have to wait and find out. The wait shouldn’t be very long now, though. Well, with Aaron Rodgers still in the mix, who knows…
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