BREAKING NEWS: Steelers Mike Tomlin WRS should scout the Bears trade which is reportedly worth $218…
It’s Championship Game Weekend! You may not be pulling for any of the four teams still in contention for Super Bowl LVIII, and who can blame you?
What about the Baltimore Ravens? NOPE!
Are the Kansas City Chiefs creating another layer of AFC “insurmountability”? No, thank you!
Will the San Francisco 49ers tie the Steelers with a sixth Lombardi Trophy? Please, no.
The Detroit Lions may be the default side to support for, but they appear to be the underdog who has just faced three bigger, stronger opponents. Their awful demise seemed unavoidable.
So, why even watch these games? Perhaps there’s an opportunity to scout some future Steelers.
This BTSC contributor is celebrating an anniversary of sorts. One year ago, I wrote my first Fanpost on the same topic as today’s article: possible free agency acquisitions who are playing in championship games. While it did not win the Pulitzer Prize, it did draw attention to Isaac Seumalo, among others. Anyone who publishes on this site will be called out for all of their incorrect opinions (such as this piece I published about Mitch Trubisky), therefore it’s only fair to highlight items with more value.
Allen Robinson, the Steelers’ current WR3, will very certainly not be a Steeler in 2024, unless he is first cut and then signed back at a significantly lower price. His future $10 million pay does not reflect his average WR3 productivity of 34 catches, 280 yards, 0 touchdowns, and 8.2 yards per reception. Robinson was 30 years old and had collected 10 seasons of wear and tear, so this could have been his last. It’s time to consider some potential successors who will be available in free agency.
Josh Reynolds, 28, finished his seventh NFL season with 40 catches, 608 yards, 5 touchdowns, and an average yardage per reception of 15.2. These stats are remarkably comparable to his career-best season in 2020, indicating that it was not a fluke year, and nothing greater should be expected. Reynolds, who stands 6’3 and weighs 194 pounds, ran a 4.52 40-yard sprint during his rookie combine. He is finishing out a two-year, $6 million contract. According to Spotrac, Reynolds’ expected market value for this round is about a two-year, $14 million deal.
Why wouldn’t one of the top offenses in the league simply re-sign Reynolds? Reynolds has been a solid WR2/WR3 for the Lions, but his role in the offense has been diminished by 2023 first-round pass-catching TE Sam LaPorta. Furthermore, despite Williams injuring his ACL just four months prior, Detroit traded up to choose WR Jameson Williams in the 2022 draft. Williams has been integrated into the offense more as the season proceeded, and over the last five games has one more reception than Reynolds on one less targets.
Why would Reynolds decide to join the Steelers? If the Steelers choose Zac Robinson as offensive coordinator, it’s worth noting that Robinson was Reynolds’ wide receiver coach in 2020, when he had a breakout season.
Mecole Hardman, 25, was re-acquired by the Chiefs shortly before the trade deadline. A thumb injury that necessitated surgery cut short his fifth-year playing time. In the five games in which he played double-digit snaps with Kansas City, he recorded 15 catches, 124 yards, and 0 touchdowns, averaging 8.4 yards per reception. His finest season was 2021, when he had 59/693/2 and an 11.7 average.
Hardman, who stands 5’10 and weighs 187 pounds, ran a 4.33 at the combine, ranking in the 94th percentile for wide receivers, but he had groin surgery in 2022, and it’s unclear how much that affected his speed. He’s still fast enough that Andy Reid called on him last week for a quick pop-pass from Patrick Mahomes, which resulted in a fumble through the end zone for a touchback. Hardman played this season on a one-year, $4 million contract signed with the Jets previous offseason. His output and injuries likely deserve even lower pay on his next contract, positioning him as a high-upside WR3 at a discount.
Richie James, 28, 5’10 183 pounds, was limited to nine games due to a knee ailment suffered in Week 2. In the final six games of the regular season, he had 9 receptions for 108 yards and 0 touchdowns, averaging 12.0 yards per catch. His greatest season came last year with the New York Giants, when he had a 57/569/4 line with an average of 10.0 yards per reception. James, who has a combine speed of 4.48, earned the veteran minimum of $1.2 million this season.
As the most senior of the wide receivers discussed here, 30-year-old Nelson Agholor remains a potential part of the passing game. In 2023, Agholor had 35 catches, 381 yards, and 4 touchdowns, with a 10.9 average that was quite consistent with his previous four years. He ran a 4.42 at the combine while standing 6’2 and weighing 200 pounds. He just ended his tenth season with a one-year, $3.25 million contract.
Ray-Ray McCloud, a former Steeler, will also be playing for the 49ers this weekend. McCloud is merely an older, more costly version of Calvin Austin, weighing about 30 pounds more and therefore slower.
So, when Omar Khan calls and asks which of these four receivers you like,
Who do you want?