No position on the Pittsburgh Steelers' roster should be more improved in 2026 than the wide receiver position. This time last year, their two starting receivers besides DK Metcalf (Roman Wilson and Calvin Austin III) had a combined 728 career receiving yards, and neither improved much on that total by the end of the season.
Now, as the Steelers prepare for their season opener against the Falcons, Metcalf and Michael Pittman Jr. (5,254 career receiving yards) look to form a strong duo, with either Wilson or rookie Germie Bernard helping round out the starting lineup. In theory, that should be enough to give even a 42-year-old version of Aaron Rodgers more of a chance to thrive.
The problem, however, is that this group was missing both Metcalf and Pittman for nearly all of training camp due to undisclosed injuries. From August 8th's Saturday Night Lights practice until just this past week, neither of the Steelers' top playmakers was practicing in any capacity. With Week 1 just around the corner, how ready will they be to hit the ground running?
The Pittsburgh Steelers offense may start slow due to camp injuries to DK Metcalf and Michael Pittman Jr.
Even with Rodgers returning as the team's starting quarterback, the offense under new head coach Mike McCarthy will be significantly different from what it was under Arthur Smith. Metcalf already struggled to build chemistry with Rodgers last season, and Pittman will have barely worked with Aaron by the time they take the field together on September 13. Both are still seasoned veterans who you hope can get up to speed quickly, but it's not the ideal scenario.
The potential butterfly effect of those two starting slowly is perhaps just as concerning. If one of Wilson or Bernard is forced into a more prominent role, it will be the first time either has been asked to do so at the NFL level. Bernard's reasoning is simply his rookie status, but even Wilson has never been targeted more than five times in a game. The other two receivers, Kaden Wetjen and Ben Skowronek, are more special teamers than anything else at this point.
The passing game load would instead fall onto players like Pat Freiermuth and the running back duo of Jaylen Warren and Rico Dowdle. After seeing how many times Rodgers settled for check-downs to Kenneth Gainwell in 2025, however, I don't want him to get into the habit of doing the same with either back. More touches for Freiermuth would be great, but even his biggest fans will admit that he shouldn't be the focal point of a good passing attack.
Can the Steelers beat the Falcons even if both Metcalf and Pittman are slow out of the gate? Yes, but it would be a whole lot easier if they aren't. Given how little they have practiced together over the last month, though, it's hard to expect them to be at full speed.
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