Brandon Aiyuk trade saga exposes rare mistake for Steelers GM Omar Khan

Throughout the day on Monday, Steelers fans were taken on a rollercoaster ride of emotions, as it was reported the Steelers were close to trading for star wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk before the carpet was pulled out from underneath them. A report late Monday evening suggested the Steelers were effectively out of the running for Aiyuk, with the Browns and Patriots being the frontrunners now.

Whether or not that report is true or if the Steelers should give up the assets required for Aiyuk is a topic for another article. The one thing I can't stop thinking about through all of this is how did Omar Khan allow the wide receiver room to reach this point of despair where an Aiyuk trade seems to be the only saving grace.

To figure that out, we need to go back to March.

On March 12, the Steelers traded Diontae Johnson to the Carolina Panthers for cornerback Donte Jackson. Johnson was a streaky player for the Steelers but proved he could be a good enough 'Robin' to George Pickens' 'Batman'. With the other weapons on the roster, Johnson was a good fit. That trade left me and other Steelers fans confused, as the wide receiver room was a lot weaker.

Omar Khan failed to make big Steelers roster move after trading Diontae Johnson

However, I had faith in Khan to go out and make a move to address that room, since trading Johnson and not adding a premier wide receiver made little sense. As the months went on, I kept waiting for the big move to drop, for the Adam Schefter notification that the Steelers were adding a big-name wide receiver to the roster.

As spring turned to summer, it started to become apparent that a big move wasn't going to be made. The Steelers drafted Roman Wilson in the third round, but expecting a rookie to jump in and become a star right away isn't fair. They signed a litany of backup and reserve receivers like Van Jefferson, Quez Watkins, and Scotty Miller, none of whom would start on most NFL teams.

And it seems like they're content to head into the 2024 season with those receivers playing a lot of snaps.

This whole situation has me really confused about what Khan's plan was after trading Johnson. There's no way he was fine with just adding those receivers listed above and calling it a day. The Steelers defense isn't getting any younger and the running game and quarterback room are ready to contribute. The Steelers are in win-now mode in a sense and they have a gaping hole at wide receiver thanks to Khan trading Johnson.

Omar Khan's track record is nearly spotless as the GM so far, so I'm not doubting that he'll step up to the plate soon and make a big move. But right now, this entire Aiyuk saga is showing just how weak the receiver room is and that trading Johnson could be a rare mistake from the "Khan artist".