Throughout the free agency period we heard the name Tyler Boyd. The flavor of the month then switched to Brandon Aiyuk and a possible trade for the 49ers’ star. Then today we learned that the Pittsburgh Steelers were a ‘team to watch’ as Denver looked to part ways with Courtland Sutton.
The bottom line here is that you should not be surprised that the Steelers have been mentioned with these three guys. Since Diontae Johnson was traded to Carolina, Mike Tomlin and company have been desperate to add a veteran receiver or two to the team. With Boyd likely to see more action in the slot (and wanting a lot more money than the Steelers will pay) it was no surprise that Aiyuk came up. The Niners’ asking price is significant and I don’t see it happening.
In the case of Sutton, he’s played his entire six-year career in Denver but he’s also had to play with numerous quarterbacks ranging from new Steelers’ signal-caller Russell Wilson to Drew Lock and Jeff Driskel. With that in mind, I’ll give him a pass on some of his stats which likely would have been better with more consistent passers. He has just one 1,000 yard season and has caught an average of just under 50 balls per season. He’s currently due $13 million in base salary for 2024.
Whether or not Sutton would be a good acquisition or not I can’t say because a lot of that would depend on the price. He seems like he would be a very nice compliment to George Pickens on the outside. Plus he does have some familiarity with Wilson behind center.
What this latest rumor proves however is that Omar Khan and Tomlin know they need to have help at the position. They both made it sound like things were “just fine” at their Pre-Draft Press Conference this week but there’s no way they are comfortable. Like a duck paddling from a predator, they may have seemed calm on the surface but below they are moving fast to fill this area of need.
This shouldn’t surprise you and nothing they do over the next few days to address the position shouldn’t either.
