The Pittsburgh Steelers didn't take long to make a splash on Monday. Less than an hour into the NFL's negotiation window, ESPN insider Adam Schefter reported that the Steelers had traded for Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr.
This news came in the minutes following the announcement that the Colts had come to contract terms with free-agent wide receiver Alec Pierce. Along with the Pittman trade, NFL Network's Mike Garafolo reported that the Steelers are signing their new wide receiver to a three-year, $59 million deal. The trade was executed with a late-round pick-swap in the 2026 NFL Draft.
At $19 million per season, the Steelers aren't necessarily breaking the bank on the 28-year-old wide receiver—especially when we consider that Pierce just earned $29 million per year on his new deal.
But despite the respectable contract and the cheap trade price, the addition of Pittman raises more questions than answers.
Michael Pittman Jr. doesn't solve the Pittsburgh Steelers' biggest questions at wide receiver
Pittman isn't a bad football player, but he's also far from elite. The veteran receiver has averaged just under 800 yards per season over his past two years despite playing in 33 of 34 possible games. Meanwhile, Pittman hasn't earned a grade inside the top-45 at his position since 2023, per Pro Football Focus.
This isn't to say that he doesn't have anything to offer the Steelers... but Pittsburgh still lacks a go-to option in Mike McCarthy's passing offense.
Both Pittman and DK Metcalf profile as No. 2 wide receivers. You can never have too many quality pass-catchers, but neither fits the bill of the player the Steelers can pepper with targets and run their offense through.
While this takes care of the outside receivers, Pittsburgh still needs a receiver who can man the slot position and manipulate coverage over the middle of the field. Thus, the trade for Pittman hardly means the Steelers won't be in the market for a wide receiver as early as their top pick in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Another problem is that the Steelers are now dishing out $55 million to their top two receivers alone this year, per Over the Cap. Yet neither Pittman nor Metcalf has been a 1,000-yard receiver over the past two seasons. This feels like an obnoxious amount of cap space devoted to players who haven't been producing enough results on the field.
The Steelers suddenly have one of the league's priciest WR tandems but somehow still lack a true No. 1, go-to target. Something feels off.
Do the Steelers still need to draft a wide receiver early? What will the target distribution look like this year? Would Pittsburgh be open to moving Metcalf? Will Pittman turn things around with McCarthy? And on top of all of these questions, we don't even know for certain who the quarterback will be this year.
Michael Pittsman Jr. could prove to be a quality addition to the Steelers, but just like Metcalf, the arrow is currently pointed down. This was a relatively low-cost trade with the Indianapolis Colts, but in many ways, it raises more questions than answers.