Tim Benz: Steelers' WR depth issues can't be rationalized away

Do you know how I can tell that the Pittsburgh Steelers’ precarious wide receiver depth is starting to become a big concern?

Because Steelers fans keep trying to tell me I shouldn’t be concerned. That’s how.

That’s usually the telltale sign. The harder the Steelers’ fan base pushes back against what it deems to be a negative narrative, the more you can be sure they are worried about that negative narrative.

If you want examples, check out some of the exchanges I had with a few Steelers fans on social media this week.

The most prevalent response from the fan base seems to be, “It’s only May. The team will get something done before the season starts.”

OK. Maybe. As we’ve outlined in this space previously, the Steelers do have a history of adding veterans late in training camp to fill glaring holes before the Week 1 kickoff.

So it’s not time to fret.

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That doesn’t mean the current situation is ideal. That doesn’t mean the Steelers wouldn’t have preferred to have a starting-caliber complement to George Pickens already in place by now. That doesn’t mean that the Steelers haven’t tried to acquire such a player and have been rebuffed in their efforts to do so.

I presume that the Steelers were one of the “multiple teams” that ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler referenced who made a run at San Francisco’s Brandon Aiyuk and/or Deebo Samuel. There are reports from Denver saying that the Steelers’ front office made inquiries about Courtland Sutton before draft weekend ended, but the Broncos decided to keep him.

Plus, we all know the Steelers restructured Alex Highsmith’s contract in advance of the draft (one of the high-traffic times for player movement on the NFL calendar) with a purpose. That wasn’t a coincidence. The hope was to give the organization as much flexibility as possible in case a solid trade opportunity for a starting-worthy wide receiver or legit slot corner was presented.

Meanwhile, general manager Omar Khan keeps acquiring tertiary-level pass-catchers such as Van Jefferson, Denzel Mims, Quez Watkins and Scotty Miller to buffer the depth chart with numbers in case a big-name acquisition doesn’t avail itself.

Yet Steelers fans keep insisting that there is nothing to see here and that I should stay calm because… “all is well!”

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Part of the reason I’m getting the impression that Steelers fans and some local media are starting to sweat out the receiver situation is that the rationalizing is starting.

I’m beginning to hear that the lack of receiver depth is an overrated problem because:

• Arthur Smith doesn’t run that many three-wide-receiver sets anyway!: That’s true. He doesn’t. I’m just kinda wondering who the second wide receiver is going to be when he runs two-wide receiver sets.

• Roman Wilson is the next Hines Ward!: Easy does it. He’s a rookie. Let Roman Wilson prove he’s at least Cedric Wilson before we start calling him Hines Ward.

• Pat Freiermuth is basically the second wide receiver: Great. Can Freiermuth stay healthy this year? And if he does, will Russell Wilson throw him the ball? Or will he continue to avoid the middle of the field like it has coronavirus, as he has done for much of his career?

• Calvin Austin III is a sleeper this year!: I’ve fallen asleep waiting for that to be the case for the last two years.

• They can use Justin Fields to catch passes!: Really? About 51 of them? Because that’s how many Diontae Johnson had a year ago.

• (Insert Jefferson/Watkins/Miller/Mims) is better than you think!: No, he isn’t. None of them are. They combined for 57 catches last year.

I’m not attempting to create panic. Like many of you, I assume Khan is likely to get some veteran pass-catcher of acclaim onto the roster between now and the season opener.

That said, if you shot him up with truth serum, I’m betting Khan would say that he is more than a little disappointed that the receiver market hasn’t been able to bear more fruit. And I think he’d admit that, after trading Johnson to Carolina in March, he would’ve expected to have a more clear-cut No. 2 receiver by now.

But I know, I know…

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It’s “only” May.

Listen: Tim Benz and Chris Adamski discuss the state of the Steelers WR position, Steelers rookie minicamp and Najee Harris’ status.