The National Football League trade deadline has passed and while it wasn’t quite like the NBA, it had its share of movement and surprising moments. For the normally stagnant Pittsburgh Steelers it was anything but as they made two significant moves prior to the end of the day. One move made perfect sense while the other was a head-scratcher. Regardless, see how N.F.L. betting has already changed.
Claypool to the Bears
You can’t teach 6’4”, 240lbs with 4.5 speed but you also can’t wait much longer for it all to come together. Chase Claypool just couldn’t follow up his rookie season last year or this year and Mike Tomlin had seen enough. We’ve been saying for weeks on the SCB Steelers Podcast that if you could get a third and fifth/sixth or even a second then you had to take it. The Chicago Bears came calling with that second rounder and Omar Khan jumped.
You’ll recall that the Steelers used a second to draft Claypool. He was their first selection in 2020 but they didn’t have a first rounder due to the Devin Bush trade. Claypool raced out to 11 touchdowns in his rookie campaign but that was the pinnacle. He seemed to play smaller than he was at times short-arming balls and lacked the ability to use his physical tools to his advantage. With the Steelers sitting in the basement of the AFC North, Tomlin and Khan understood the assignment.
With limited picks in next year’s draft they both knew the team had to have more selections. The current roster lacks players at certain positions and the depth is screaming for help. Throw in the fact that it was highly unlikely they were going to re-sign Claypool after next season and the writing was on the wall. This was a great move that could give the Steelers three selections in the first 40 picks.
William Jackson III
While the trade with Chicago was a home run, the decision to trade with Washington for 30-year old William Jackson III is more like a fielder’s choice. Leading up to the 2016 Draft, Jackson was high on the Steelers’ wish list. Unfortunately the Cincinnati Bengals selected him one spot ahead of the Steelers who ended up with Artie Burns and we know how that turned out.
Today the Steelers traded for Jackson by sending a conditional 2025 sixth round pick. They will also receive a conditional 2025 seventh round pick along with Jackson. He has yet to return since playing in week five. He’s been dealing with a back issue. Numerous reports claimed that Jackson was unhappy with the amount of zone he was playing as he considers himself more a man to man cornerback. That’s where the questions begin.
After what we saw from Ahkello Witherspoon Sunday in Philly we can assume the Steelers were desperate for help. We can conclude that they aren’t totally comfortable with James Pierre and perhaps Levi Wallace will be out longer than expected. What I find a bit surprising is that the Steelers play a fair amount of zone coverage so I’m a bit confused as to why Jackson would have chosen to come here.
There’s also the contractual side to this. Should the Steelers decide to keep Jackson for 2023 they’ll be on the hook for over $12 million. I just don’t see the logic in bringing in a guy who has only played a full season once and has just five career interceptions. Knowing the Steelers’ ineptness for drafting cornerbacks, maybe they’re just trying to keep the position locked down with veterans but this one still seems like a bit of a reach.
Time will tell what comes of both of these deals but on the surface this is a clear case of batting .500 as far as I’m concerned.
