If there are two things we know about Omar Khan and the Pittsburgh Steelers, it's that they have a need at receiver and they are willing to get aggressive when it comes to trades. We saw this during the 2025 offseason, when Khan traded a second-round pick for DK Metcalf and paid him roughly $33 million per year on a new deal.
Now the 2026 NFL trade deadline is approaching, and the Indianapolis Colts' receiver has already been drawing major buzz in connection with Pittsburgh. But the Steelers can't afford to pay the steep asking price Indy is seeking in a deal.
ESPN insider Adam Schefter recently noted on his podcast that the Colts are seeking a third-round pick in exchange for Downs.
"Josh Downs, the Colts have told teams they are looking for third-round value. Nobody's willing to do that right now," Shefter said.
Thankfully, the Steelers aren't chomping at the bit to send a third-round pick to Indianapolis... and they can't let their need for wide receiver help lure them into making a bad business decision.
The Pittsburgh Steelers cannot afford to trade a third-round pick for Colts WR Josh Downs
This is nothing against Downs as a football player. The fourth-year receiver has proven to be a quality option from the slot who can offer some stability in the passing game. However, there's no question that a third-round pick is far too steep for a player with half a season remaining on his rookie contract.
Downs' contract will expire after the 2026 season, which means the Steelers may only get eight or nine games out of him if they were to pull off a trade soon. Unfortunately, short of using the franchise tag, they would have no control to keep Downs from simply hitting the free-agent market next March and signing with another team.
We saw how wild the wide receiver market was this past offseason, with players like Alec Pierce and Wan'Dale Robinson earning deals between $17.5 million and $28.5 million per season. While Downs may not reach this level, he'll want to earn as much as he can on his second deal.
Downs can separate and beat man coverage (which is a huge asset), but he doesn't often test defenses downfield, as evidenced by his underwhelming 10.9 career yards per reception. This isn't really the type of player the Steelers need, as he would feed further into the short-passing game plan, rather than help Aaron Rodgers and Pittsburgh's offense open up the intermediate and deep portions of the field.
When it comes to half-year rentals, it's extremely hard to justify giving up a third-round pick for a player who may not be part of the long-term plan. It's especially hard when considering that this would be similar to what the Colts received for future Hall of Fame guard Quenton Nelson and even more than they received for three-time Pro Bowl defensive lineman DeForest Buckner in their recent trades.
Steelers need to hold their ground and wait for trade price to come down on Josh Downs
So what's the best solution here for Khan and the Steelers? They simply need to stand their ground and wait this one out.
If there's a team out there willing to throw a third-round pick at the Colts to essentially rent Downs for half a season, good on them. But it doesn't sound like that will ultimately be the case. Once we start talking about a fourth-round pick, that's pretty easy to get behind.
If the Steelers were to trade a fourth-rounder for Downs, they could get half a season out of the slot receiver and maybe even earn a compensatory pick if and when he walks away in free agency next offseason.
But at the end of the day, a third-rounder is simply too rich, and I think the Colts know that. The Pittsburgh Steelers can't afford to trade for Josh Downs unless Indianapolis comes down on the asking price.
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