Steelers Now
PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Steelers outside linebacker Nick Herbig and wide receiver Roman Wilson have known each other since they were teenagers. Before reuniting as members of the Steelers in 2024, they were teammates at Saint Louis School in Honolulu, Hawaii.
After signing a four-year, $100 million deal on Wednesday, Herbig reflected on how far he and Wilson have come. He expects big things on the horizon for his fellow Hawaiian.
“We talk about playing with your teammates from college, but we went to high school together,” Herbig said. “We were teenagers, and now, we’re in the league.
“We’re grown. We’ve gotta handle business. And just seeing him mature as not just a player but a person and seeing how he approaches business and attacks the game, I think he’s having a great year. Special player.”
To say the least, Wilson hasn’t lived up to expectations in his first two seasons. In 13 games in 2025, Wilson recorded 12 receptions for 166 yards and two touchdowns. He was hampered by injuries in his rookie campaign, playing in only one game.
Wilson was a healthy scratch on numerous occasions down the stretch last year, as Rodgers preferred to have veteran receivers Adam Thielen and Marquez Valdes-Scantling in the lineup. Rodgers is very detailed and expects his receivers to be in the right spot.
Wilson admitted that mentally it was a challenge being on the same page with four-time NFL MVP quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
“I think last year with Aaron, that was pretty cool,” Wilson recently said on Christian Kuntz’s podcast. “Just being so locked into his signals, how he calls plays, you know? You kind of just have to be on the same wavelength with him. You know, what he’s saying, what he’s trying to do, but it’s been good. Mentally, it’s been challenging, but it’s been fun and it hasn’t been too difficult so far.”
On the final play of the final team period for the first-team offense on Wednesday, Rodgers ended a two-minute drill with a monster big play, dropping back to heave a 70-yard deep ball over the entire Steelers defense, and into the arms of a streaking Wilson. It’s still early, of course, but Rodgers and Wilson are off to a good start.
The 2024 third-round draft pick is staying after practice beside lesser-known wideouts, striving to gradually shift the narrative that surrounds his career in black and gold.
“Just trying to do as much as I can, honestly,” Wilson said after an OTA practice last week. “I kinda just feel it out, just trying to be one of the last three guys out here. Max (Hurleman) and Brandon Johnson are always out here with me. I just try to be with them. Those are the guys who, even since last year, have been out here every day, so just continue to keep doing that.”
Wilson has shouldered the blame for his largely unproductive first couple of seasons, and he wants to finally make a name for himself...
