3 players the Steelers can trade for before the 2020-2021 season
By Sam Ouhaj
The Pittsburgh Steelers have a great roster to start to the season but what if you could make it even better! Teams who appear in the Super Bowl nine out of ten times made a key trade to improve their team.
The Steelers need depth at the inside linebacker position, nose tackle position, and at the left guard position. Today I will be breaking down three trades the Steelers can make to address the lack of depth at these positions and how it can improve their team before the season starts.
3. The Steelers trade a 2021 3rd round pick and Ryan Switzer for Dont’a Hightower from the New England Patriots
The Steelers already have two phenomenal linebackers in T.J. Watt and Devin Bush who are arguably a top-three duo in the NFL. However, what if the Steelers went out and acquired a three-time Super Bowl champ in Dont’a Hightower.
Hightower just turned 30 years old and has one more year remaining on his contract. While Bill Belichick will not let one of his best players in recent years leave for nothing, I think a 3rd round pick and Ryan Switzer can get the job done. Diontae Johnson has already replaced Switzer as the team’s returner and on the depth chart. Switzer would entice Belichick as well due to the Patriots’ lack of wide receiver depth. While the third-round pick may sting, getting a mentor for Bush and Watt would be huge.
Hightower and the Steelers have already had an interest in one another when Hightower was a free agent in 2017 before signing with the Patriots again so why not make that possibility a reality. Hightower would be the leader of the Steelers defense and could accelerate this unit into the top three discussion.
Now before anyone says why would Bellichick even consider trading one of his best players, think about the type of GM Bill is. In the 2018 season, it was leaked that Tom Brady was on the chopping block in favor of Jimmy Garppolo only for it to be overruled by Robert Kraft. I trust Bellichick and if the price is right, Hightower can find himself on his way to Pittsburgh.