Should the Steelers sign Martavis Bryant?

Former Steelers wide receiver, Martavis Bryant, recently applied for reinstatement. Should Pittsburgh bring him back on a cheap deal if reinstated?

Martavis Bryant is a player who exploded onto the scene for the Steelers like very few have ever done. In his very first NFL action in Week 7 of 2014, Bryant caught two passes for 40 yards and a touchdown. In fact, the very first catch of his NFL career was a 35-yard touchdown against the Houston Texans.

After an electric start in the NFL, Bryant’s career was derailed by constant suspensions. Martavis never played in more than 15 games in a season throughout his career because of suspensions, and he missed the entire 2016 NFL season due to a failed drug test.

In 2018, Bryant was suspended indefinitely for yet another failed drug test. But with the NFL no longer suspending players for recreational marijuana use, Bryant has applied for reinstatement once again.

Should the Steelers answer the call?

There is no doubt that Bryant could be a headache at times. However, even with all of his issues off the field, he seldom had trouble on it. In fact, Bryant was pretty soft-spoken on game day and was never displayed ranting or complaining on the sidelines (which is far more than we can say for Antonio Brown).

When in shape, Bryant is one of the most dangerous deep threats in the NFL with his 6’4” frame and his long speed to pull away from defenders down the field.

Pittsburgh was really lacking this type of speed on offense last year with JuJu Smith-Schuster, Diontae Johnson, and James Washington leading the charge (each of them running no faster than a 4.53-second 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine).

This year, Pittsburgh emphasized that lack of speed by adding Notre Dame wide receiver, Chase Claypool. While Claypool ran a 4.42 at the NFL Combine this year, many argue that he doesn’t play as fast as his testing numbers indicate.

Currently, the Steelers are much deeper at the wide receiver position than they were just a year ago. However, Pittsburgh is still lacking a legitimate deep threat. After being away from football for nearly two years, it’s hard to tell what kind of shape Martavis Bryant will be in. However, we do know that he is still just 28-years old and we’ve witnessed him average over 15 yards per catch for the Steelers throughout his career.

Byrant also offers Pittsburgh a red zone threat, as he has complied 17 touchdowns in 16 career starts for the Steelers.

Obviously, the return of Bryant is a long-shot, and the Steelers have made it a point to cleanse their locker room of any cancerous players. However, if Bryant was willing to come back for a minimum contract and be content as a depth option for Pittsburgh, perhaps they should make an exception in a closing Super Bowl window.