ESPN's Wild Steelers Take is Wrong

The Pittsburgh Steelers made a trade this offseason that changes their offense entirely. It opens up their passing game for the first time in years, gives Aaron Rodgers two reliable veterans at the wide receiver position, and solves an issue general manager Omar Khan has been trying to fix since he stepped into the position.

And somehow, ESPN believes it was a mistake.

After making the case that re-signing Aaron Rodgers was a boring move that didn't do much to help this team, ESPN's Seth Walder supported his arguement by stating that the Michael Pittman Jr. trade was "a mistake."

"The Steelers did add to Rodgers' receiving group, trading for Pittman and drafting Germie Bernard in the second round. The Pittman trade was a mistake, though," Walder writes. "He has $24 million due in 2026, which is more than I think he would receive on the open market. Why pay Pittman $24 million when Wan'Dale Robinson made $17.5 million per year as a free agent? In essence, the Steelers traded a late-round pick swap for a negative value contract."

What a Wrong Take

The Steelers came into the offseason with one massive goal - find some wide receivers. After ending the season with Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Adam Theilen as their WR2 and WR3 behind Metcalf, they knew they couldn't ignore the position any longer.

So, outside of drafting Bernard in the second round, the team made sure they had a veteran join the mix as a starter. That veteran is Pittman Jr., who is coming off of a seven-touchdown season and brings two 1,000-yard seasons with him to Pittsburgh. He's never had a season under 784 yards since his rookie year (503 yards in 13 games).

Why didn't they sign Robinson instead? Well, that answer is an easy one. They wanted to reliable name, and Robinson came with risk.

Yes, the Steelers could've signed Robinson for cheaper, but they would've gotten a younger player who's coming off his first really good season in the NFL.

The team's goal wasn't to find the next superstar free agent wide receiver, it was to add a name they knew would make this team better. Pittman Jr. comes with little risk and a ton of reward for how much he'll open up the field for Metcalf, Bernard, Pat Freiermuth and Darnell Washington.

Sometimes, the context of the move is neccassary to think about when forming an opinion. Pittman Jr. was a great move from the moment it happened, and nothing has changed.

Maybe Robinson has another great year. But all Pittman Jr. needs to do is be the missing piece for Rodgers and company to make the trade worth it. As long as this team improves in the passing game, Omar Khan did his job.

It's hard to believe a 28-year-old who's shown what he's capable of in this league is going to be a "mistake" for a team that needed just that.