Healthy Calvin Austin taking steps to becoming more well-rounded WR for Steelers

Barring the same type of unexpected — and unfortunate — injury that ruined his rookie season, wide receiver Calvin Austin will make his professional debut Friday night for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

After suffering a foot injury on the eve of the 2022 preseason opener, Austin eventually needed surgery and spent the entire year on injured reserve.

Now healthy and flashing the type of playmaking skills that led the Steelers to using a fourth-round draft pick on him, Austin is just days away from hitting another marker in his recovery when the Steelers play at Tampa Bay.

Austin, though, isn’t looking that far ahead, which is probably smart considering his injury last summer occurred during a walk-through the day before the first exhibition game.

“I haven’t,” Austin said Sunday when asked about suiting up for the first time in a game. “I’m really just thinking about this practice. I have to make this practice the best one.”

Then, Austin went out and made a deep reception on a pass from Kenny Pickett, beating slot corner Chandon Sullivan down the right sideline for a completion that went for a touchdown.

“It definitely has been an emphasis,” Austin said. “I’ve made some plays down the field, and I have to continue to do that.”

It was another in a series of plays this summer that has brought a smile to the face of wide receivers coach Frisman Jackson, who, like Austin, joined the Steelers organization a year ago.

“We saw some of that (last year), but you really see it now,” Jackson said. “One year of growth and development has helped. He’s had to sit back, watch, lift weights and get stronger. He’s bigger, he’s stronger, and you can see the confidence he has in himself now.”

Austin was the second receiver the Steelers drafted in 2022, following the selection of George Pickens in the second round. While Pickens was the camp darling last year with his spectacular one-handed catches, Austin was holding his own for the first two weeks before his injury.

Until that point, the 5-foot-8, 162-pound Austin was on track to earning a spot as the team’s slot receiver. Armed with his 4.32 speed in the 40-yard dash, Austin was getting open on a consistent basis.

The speed that could have been sapped from his foot injury has returned for Austin this summer, and he has evolved into a more well-rounded receiver by making plays all over the field — and not when the Steelers ask him to go deep.

“I’ve seen him making some catches running across the middle that gives us confidence he’s not just an outside-the-numbers, vertical-speed guy,” Jackson said. “He’s got to continue to get better. We’re starting to see some other things flash.

“We’ve also got to find a way to get him the ball down the field vertically. He’s going to help us immensely in the vertical passing game.”

If Austin can hold onto the No. 4 receiver spot behind Diontae Johnson, Pickens and Allen Robinson, he will provide Pickett with another option that was lacking from the Steelers’ game plan a year ago. The offense could have used a dose of Austin’s speed when Chase Claypool was sent to Chicago in a midseason trade.

Austin, though, has to earn his spot by making plays in the preseason and not just on the Saint Vincent College practice fields.

“I’ve been challenging him,” coach Mike Tomlin said. “The big challenge for him is to perform out here in a setting like this like a guy who has been around here. He’s been around here, but he hasn’t had the physical reps, so it’s been a challenge.

“So far, so good. He’s not performing like a rookie. He’s been performing like a guy who has been in the program, and that’s encouraging.”

Pickett was the third-team quarterback at the start of training camp in 2022, so he worked extensively with Austin and has that reference point from last August to gauge how far the second-year receiver has come since the injury.

“His speed pops, and getting him the ball in space is huge,” Pickett said. “He’s running by guys, and he’s going to continue to do that. He’s been working hard. I’m really proud of the way he has worked. He’s showed up. He’s a pro’s pro, and I love playing with Cal. I’m excited to build on that relationship together out there.”