Steelers Rumors: George Pickens Trade Puts Pressure On This Player

The Pittsburgh Steelers shook things up on Wednesday, trading wide receiver George Pickens to the Dallas Cowboys.

It’s a move that comes with some risk, but not to the level that some might think.

Pickens, of course, was the club’s leading receiver the last two seasons, but there’s an expectation that certain players already in the system will step up and help fill his absence. DK Metcalf can do that on the outside, while Pittsburgh reportedly also expects to see a leap from second-year wide receiver Roman Wilson.

“(The Steelers are) counting on (a) Roman Wilson Year 2 jump,” ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler said on X. “This offseason he looks like a different player than from his injury-riddled rookie campaign.”

Wilson suffered an ankle injury in training camp last season, which ultimately kept him off the field through almost the entirety of his rookie season. The Steelers expected him to serve as an underneath complement to Pickens, but will now transition and ask him to do that for Metcalf. It’s risky relying on an undersized player to come back strong off an injury, especially one who had five total snaps in his lone game appearance, but the talent is evident and enough to make the risk worth taking.

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