The Steelers recently traded for Allen Robinson, as they wanted to get a veteran to eliminate any need to draft a wide receiver in the 2023 draft.
Adding a skilled veteran instead of drafting a rookie added a new wrinkle to the Steelers offense. It gives Kenny Pickett another potential weapon. How well Robinson performs is an open-ended question, but it’s doubtful he will get cut. However, one must assume his addition means that three returning veteran wide receivers are on the hot seat for the Steelers entering training camp.
We know four receivers will be starters to one degree or another Calvin Austin, Diontae Johnson, George Pickens, and Allen Robinson. Three Steelers were signed as free agents during the off-season Ja’Marcus Bradley, Dan Chisena, and Dez Fitzpatrick. Those are the three fighting to earn a spot on the roster. None of them have had impressive careers with their former teams, and Bradley didn’t play last year.
Then, three returning veterans will be fighting to keep from being cut. Those three are Gunner Olszewski, Anthony Miller, Miles Boykin, and Cody White. For the sake of this article, we will assume that one will be cut, but if Bradley, Chisena, or Fitzpatrick unexpectedly make the team, then at least two get sent packing. Even if none of the newly signed free agents makes the squad, one of the other four or two could be thumbing a ride down Highway 30 when the Steelers break training camp in Latrobe, PA.
Normally NFL teams had cut days after every preseason game. This is no longer the case. Teams do not have a mandatory cutdown day until the preseason ends, and they now make all the cuts at once. There is only one caveat that can save any players on the hot seat: if any injuries occur to any receivers before the end of the preseason.
It happened to Calvin Austin, who missed his entire rookie season, it's always a possibility. For this exercise, we will assume no injuries occur. So Let’s examine the four returning veterans ad see which one is the most likely to not be on the squad when the season starts this coming September.