Steelers Now
Steelers wide receiver Roman Wilson, who missed most of his rookie season due to injuries, turned heads during Pittsburgh’s OTAs. It could be a breakout year for the Michigan product.
Pro Football Focus believes Wilson is bound to make a big leap in Year 2.
“In his final season at Michigan in 2023, Wilson accounted for 48 receptions, 789 yards and 12 touchdowns. He displayed strong hands (just one drop) and big-play ability, catching 12 passes 20-plus yards downfield. Moving forward, Wilson has an opportunity to step up into a bigger role. With George Pickens being traded to Dallas, Pittsburgh has very little depth at wide receiver behind recently acquired D.K. Metcalf, and the team will need his production to contend in a tough AFC North division,” Ryan Smith of PFF wrote.
Steelers veteran wide receiver Robert Woods is confident that Woods will bounce back after facing adversity in his rookie campaign.
“Coming to work ready to work,” Woods said of Wilson last week at OTAs. “Coming out here, you see he’s fast and skillful, but when you see his approach, taking the details to improve his game. He had a great week this week. He had some big, explosive plays. Just give him confidence. He’s a confident player, being able to make his plays, be himself and get the ball in his hands. I think when you give confidence to our whole room, sky’s the limit.”
The Steelers selected Wilson with their third-round pick (No. 84) in the 2024 NFL Draft after he recorded a career-high 48 receptions for 789 yards and 12 touchdowns in his final year at Michigan.
However, Wilson’s rookie season ended before it even started as he suffered a high ankle sprain in the first week of training camp.
The 23-year-old was eventually able to work his way back and even received some in-game action, but he then suffered another setback, which he was never able to fully recover from.
Wilson is finally healthy, though, and Woods is willing to do whatever it takes to help him reach his full potential.
“You wanna lead by example and show them the ropes and stuff like that,” Woods said. “I feel like my game and how I approach it is I’m trying to feed my knowledge to everybody on the whole team, even the DBs. If everybody getting better, this whole team is getting better.”
Only time will tell if Wilson can reach the expectations of those around him, but he seems to be more confident than ever now that he’s back on the field and making plays.
“I missed a lot of time, so putting in a lot of work,” Wilson said. “I feel like I’ve got a lot better. The coaches did a great job helping me develop and you can see it. I feel good.”
Aaron Becker contributed reporting for this story.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now: Steelers WR Roman Wilson Set to Make Huge Year 2 Leap
