Former Jets 2nd-round pick Denzel Mims seeks to contribute to Steelers WR corps

Three-and-a-half years, three teams, a trade and multiple injuries into his pro career, Denzel Mims has learned a lessons about the NFL.

“Don’t be comfortable, really,” Mims said from the Pittsburgh Steelers’ locker room last week.

A second-round pick in 2020 after being a star receiver at Baylor, Mims was given another chance to establish himself in the NFL when the Steelers signed him to their practice squad.

Limited to 30 games over his first three seasons, Mims has come to recognize that his sizable talent and skillset alone won’t be enough to keep him in the NFL.

“It doesn’t really matter no matter how good you’re doing or how good you’re performing, if you’re not available, you might not be there the next day,” Mims said. “Just be available, and don’t be too comfortable. Have a chip on your shoulder, keep going, and make sure you’re available. That’s just what I’ve learned, being on my third team.”

Denzel Mims is rising up draft boards????

• 6'3, 207 pound receiver
• Speedster, ran a 4.38 in the 40
• Acrobatic leaper, 38.5 inch vertical

182 catches, 2901 yards, 28 TD his
last 3 years at Baylor. Line him up
opposite Davante #Unstoppable pic.twitter.com/ycpKhpa1M7

— IKE Packers Podcast (@IKE_Packers) March 3, 2020

At 6-foot-3, 207 pounds and timed at 4.38 seconds in the 40-yard dash at the NFL combine, Mims was expected by many to be a No. 1 WR in the NFL. But from his first training camp — Mims had a hamstring injury that kept him out of most workouts — to a personal issue that forced him to miss a game late that rookie season, to a bout with severe food poisoning, Mims has seemingly been through everything. That includes a trade request from his agent as he embarked on Year 3 last summer all the way through to a trade this past summer.

The Steelers offer him something of a fresh start. Their depth at receiver tested by injuries to everyone from the likes of starter Diontae Johnson to WR5-types Gunner Olszewski (since returned to action) and Cody White (waived/injured in August) allow from some opportunity for a player to contribute to a struggling offense that could use a playmaker.

“I feel like I can help (the Steelers’ receiving corps) out a lot, take a lot of stress off of them,” Mims said. “Just with double coverage I feel like I can make some plays to help them out and also help them in the blocking game as well.

“I just need to keep my head down and keep working.”

A month after acquiring him in a conditional exchange of low-round draft picks, the Detroit Lions in August released Mims after he’d been plagued by an ankle injury.

Mims last week declared himself healthy but acknowledged he needs to get into football shape after his seven-week layoff. Landing in Pittsburgh reunites Mims with his position coach from college, Frisman Jackson.

“I have a history with him,” said Jackson, the Steelers wide receivers coach who held that role when Mims had 20 touchdowns in 26 games over the 2018 and 2019 seasons. “He’s yet to really show us what he can really do just yet as he tries to get himself to get back into shape. But I definitely know the skillset is there, and hopefully he can work his way up and be able to help us at some point.”

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