Steelers Now
If the Pittsburgh Steelers could go back in time, should they have picked a wide receiver instead of offensive tackle Troy Fautanu at 20th overall in the 2024 NFL Draft? Wide receiver was a huge weakness for the club in 2024. NFL.com’s Ali Bhanpuri and Tom Blair believes so.
In Bhanpuri and Blair’s 2024 NFL Draft do-over, they had the Steelers selecting Washington wide receiver Rome Odunze at 20th overall.
“Mike Tomlin’s “standard is the standard” mantra has taken a negative turn in recent years, with the standard becoming synonymous with bland, uninspired offense. The Steelers’ lack of perimeter playmakers beyond George Pickens was routinely on display this season — especially in comparison to the conference’s heavy-hitting trio of Kansas City, Buffalo and Baltimore — which is a problem Pittsburgh seemed to have anticipated, considering the team was linked to Brandon Aiyuk during the offseason before ultimately acquiring Mike Williams at the trade deadline,” Bhanpuri and Blair wrote. “The lack of production from Steelers wideouts has even drawn Art Rooney II’s ire, with the team’s owner recently name-checking the room as an area they’ve “got to look at improving” this offseason. Well, instead of waiting ’til this spring to find a solve, the Steelers roll back the clock and lock in Rome Odunze at a steal. The skilled route-runner and top-10 talent provides Pittsburgh with a huge offensive boost, helping them contend with the Ravens, Bills and Chiefs for years to come.”
To say the least, Steelers general manager Omar Khan mismanaged the wide receiver position in 2024. He went all-in for Brandon Aiyuk and had no Plan B once he came up short. Going into the season with Van Jefferson as the No. 2 wide receiver was a risky proposition, and the Steelers suffered because of it.
Fautanu suffered a season-ending knee injury in Week 2, so it was basically a redshirt year for the rookie. The same occurred for wide receiver Roman Wilson, who the Steelers selected in the third round out of Michigan in the 2024 NFL Draft. The Steelers had high hopes for Wilson in 2024, but he was hindered by injuries.
Wilson suffered a high ankle sprain on the third day of training camp, which sidelined him for the rest of camp, all of the preseason, and the first five weeks of the regular season. Then when he finally got to play in Week 6 against the Las Vegas Raiders, he suffered a hamstring injury that landed him on injured reserve.
Odunze, who was selected by the Chicago Bears at ninth overall in the 2024 NFL Draft, recorded 54 receptions on 101 targets for 734 yards and three touchdowns in his rookie campaign. Instead of being the second receiver taken off the board, Odunze was the fifth WR selected in the 2024 draft do-over by NFL.com.
