With just a few hours remaining before the NFL trade deadline Tuesday, the Steelers shipped a fifth-round draft pick to the New York Jets for veteran WR Mike Williams, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Although he’s on an expiring contract, Williams was a necessity for the Steelers, who needed help at wide receiver.
Only three Steelers wide receivers — George Pickens (548 yards overall), Calvin Austin III (257) and Van Jefferson (139) — have surpassed 40 yards receiving this season.
Later Tuesday, the Steelers acquired pass-rusher Preston Smith (2.5 sacks, 19 tackles this season) from the Green Bay Packers for a seventh-round draft pick. The moves signify that Pittsburgh, which has not won a playoff game since the 2016 season, is all-in on making a deep playoff run.
Williams, who had 12 receptions for 166 yards in nine games with the Jets, should see an immediate uptick in usage on his new team. Steelers QB Russell Wilson has done a superb job spreading the ball to his receivers in his two starts this season, completing passes to eight different targets for 542 yards.
Following Wilson’s insertion as the starting QB over Justin Fields, Pittsburgh’s offense has had back-to-back games of 400-plus yards. The Steelers have the league’s 13th-best scoring offense (23.4 PPG).
Jets QB Aaron Rodgers weighed in on what the Steelers are getting in his former teammate on “The Pat McAfee Show” following the trade.
BREAKING NEWS: Mike Williams has been traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers
“He’s been getting better every week and he’ll be great in that Steelers locker room..
This is gonna give him more opportunities and we wish him well” ~ @AaronRodgers12
#PMSLive
pic.twitter.com/SANnCQm3zF— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) November 5, 2024
With the Cincinnati Bengals (4-5) and Cleveland Browns (2-7) struggling at the season’s midway point, the AFC North appears to be a two-team race between the Steelers and Baltimore Ravens (6-3). Pittsburgh (6-2) is seeking its first division title since 2020.
Making the playoffs or even finishing above .500 is far from a guarantee for the Steelers, however. Over the final nine games, Pittsburgh will play the Washington Commanders (7-2), Philadelphia Eagles (6-2), Kansas City Chiefs (8-0) and all six of its divisional games.
The addition of Williams seems to be the cherry on top for an all-in approach from Pittsburgh. Along with the likes of Fields and Wilson, he is the 30th player on the team whose contract expires at the end of 2024, per Spotrac.
The Steelers hope Williams returns to his pre-Jets form with the Chargers in 2021-22, when he had 1,146 and 895 yards receiving, respectively.
