Tim Benz: Assume huge gap between what Steelers are saying about WR search and what's really going on

Pittsburgh Steelers general manager Omar Khan appeared on Tuesday’s “Pat McAfee Show” with an update on his team’s hunt for a veteran starting wide receiver.

The update is that there is no update.

That conversation has been in high gear since Diontae Johnson was traded to Carolina in early March, creating a significant hole at wideout on the Steelers’ depth chart. It ramped up Monday when former Steeler turned CBS Sports analyst Bryant McFadden sent out a tweet suggesting that Khan was getting close to making a splashy move of some sort.

Ooooh, Omar is working. The #Steelers are very close to landing a significant playmaker. #herewego #StayTuned

— Bryant McFadden (@BMac_SportsTalk) April 29, 2024

On McAfee’s show, Khan tamped down that speculation, at least as it related to specific rumors about two potential star receivers on the San Francisco 49ers: Brandon Aiyuk and Deebo Samuel.

"I heard about those Wide Receiver rumors but there's nothing going on right now..

I'll text @ToneDigz if anything is happening"

Omar Khan #PMSLive pic.twitter.com/uT6GbCMIhP

— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) April 30, 2024

“I heard about it. I didn’t exactly see it,” Khan said of the rumors. “There’s nothing going on right now. I’m not exactly sure what the verbiage was or what was reported. But, (there is) nothing to report.” 

When I hear Khan claim there is “nothing to report,” my assumption is that there actually is something to report, and he’s just avoiding that confirmation. Or there is “nothing to report” because there were conversations with the 49ers that didn’t go anywhere. Or there are ongoing conversations, but they just aren’t with the 49ers.

My suspicions were advanced by a post from Denver-based NFL reporter Benjamin Allbright on Tuesday, stating that the Steelers have been actively calling teams about a receiver.

I know that the steelers had been calling around to half a dozen teams, and they've been rejected by two teams.

— Benjamin Allbright (@AllbrightNFL) April 30, 2024

They called about Aiyuk and Sutton and have been rebuffed, at least with opening talks. Called about DK, I don't believe a trade would get done there until after june first (if one got done at all).

— Benjamin Allbright (@AllbrightNFL) April 30, 2024

“Sutton” is Broncos receiver Courtland Sutton, who has been linked to the Steelers in trade banter since he decided to avoid voluntary workouts while hunting for a contract extension. As for “DK,” that’s Seahawks star pass catcher DK Metcalf. At 26 years old, Metcalf has recorded three 1,000-yard receiving seasons. In 2023, he posted 1,114 yards and eight touchdowns. A two-time Pro Bowler entering his sixth season, Metcalf is slated to make $24.5 million against the salary cap this year and $29.5 million in 2025.

Via OverTheCap.com, even a post-June 1 deal would result in $7.5 million in dead money for the Seahawks despite $17 million in savings. That said (unless things have changed since last summer), Metcalf and Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson maintained a good relationship dating back to their time together in Seattle prior to Wilson’s trade to Denver in 2022.

So maybe that’s a story to track, but the issue of compensation from the Steelers would no doubt be significant.

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Regardless, the Steelers have to do something at wide receiver.

Acquiring Roman Wilson in the third round of the draft is a nice addition. But, as a rookie, he projects as a third receiver working out of the slot. The Steelers need, at minimum, a complementary No. 2 running partner for George Pickens or potentially a primary target that can be a consistent threat outside of the numbers as some of those listed above could prove to be.

I expected a replacement for Johnson to be in place by now. Granted, the Steelers have made plenty of moves when it comes to trades and signings well after the draft and before Game 1 of the regular season. Joe Haden, Joe Schobert, Kwon Alexander and Larry Ogunjobi are all Steelers who were acquired between June 1 and the end of August in recent years.

So, it’s not imperative that a move happens now. But it is imperative that a move happens before Week 1. The Steelers can’t open the season with a combination of a rookie, plus Van Jefferson, or Calvin Austin, or Quez Watkins as the top two receivers deployed with Pickens in three-receiver sets. That’s substandard for an opening-week depth chart at that position.

I would certainly understand if Khan is just playing coy. There’s no reason to screw up a potential deal by going public with it before it’s done. As I’ve frequently stated this offseason, when it comes to the Steelers and their public statements lately, if they say one thing, believe the opposite.

Based on what Khan told McAfee on Tuesday, that better be the case when it comes to their attempts at getting a deal done to land another receiver before September.