The Pittsburgh Steelers enter training camp with questions at receiver outside of No. 1 George Pickens.
With several big-name wideouts disgruntled over slow contract talks this offseason, the Steelers are a name that always pops up as a potential trade partner. Pittsburgh general manager Omar Khan said Thursday that nothing is currently in the works on the trade market.
“There’s nothing going on right now,” Khan said, via the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. “I guess I’ll just say if there’s an opportunity to have a discussion on somebody that’s out there, somebody that’s cut -- not necessarily traded -- we’ll look at it. But I assure you our focus is on these 90 guys right now.”
Khan was asked directly about San Francisco 49ers receiver Brandon Aiyuk, who is staging a hold-in as he seeks a new contract. The GM said he has “not had any conversations about that.”
“I can tell you amongst the 32 GMs we all talk, we all have conversations, but believe it or not, it’s still early in the process here,” Khan said.
The Steelers will spend camp deciding the pecking order behind Pickens. Third-round rookie Roman Wilson figures to play a significant role. Veterans Van Jefferson, Calvin Austin III, Quez Watkins, Scott Miller and others will battle for snaps in Arthur Smith’s offense.
“Obviously, you’re going to use this time to evaluate the whole roster -- not just that [receiver] room,” Khan said. “We’re always going to have conversations with people. If there’s an opportunity to evaluate a situation or player that’s out there, that’s what we’ll do. We’ll think about it. If it makes sense, we’ll pursue it. If not, then we won’t.”
Some veterans generally shake loose during final cuts, but there is no guarantee they’d be an upgrade to those already on the Steelers' roster.