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Roman Wilson hopes to become Steelers' next 'great' WR
There may be no better team at drafting wide receivers outside of the first round than the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Over the past 10 years, the Steelers have drafted George Pickens (2022 second-round pick), Chase Claypool (2020 second-round pick), Diontae Johnson (2019 third-round pick), JuJu Smith-Schuster (2017 second-round pick) and Martavis Bryant (2014 fourth-round pick).
Michigan's Roman Wilson joined Pittsburgh's impressive list when he was selected in the third round (No. 84) of the 2024 NFL Draft.
Wilson acknowledged he has big shoes to fill on the second day of the Steelers' rookie minicamp.
"For me, it means a lot," Wilson said. "A lot of great guys have been drafted here and played receiver. It just means a lot for me to be mentioned in that group of guys already."
Wilson will likely have a chance to prove he's worthy of being mentioned with the names above early as a rookie. Outside of Wilson and Pickens, Pittsburgh's wide receiver room is quite thin.
This offseason, the Steelers have signed several No. 3 or 4 wide receivers, such as Van Jefferson, Quez Watkins and Scotty Miller.
The biggest question surrounding Wilson's game is where he'll play. Many believe that he'll primarily play in the slot, at least as a rookie. However, Wilson is confident he can play on the outside if needed.
"I feel comfortable playing both," Wilson said. "I'm just playing wherever they tell me, whether that's inside or outside."
For now, Wilson is solely focused on learning as much as he can from the veterans when they join the rookies for OTAs in a couple of weeks.
"Just following them, trying to be like them, trying to be great, learning from them and just bonding with them," Wilson added.
If Wilson can be a sponge early and often, he could very well turn out to be Pittsburgh's next great wide receiver.
More must-reads:
- Undrafted rookie QB says Steelers 'believed' in him the most
- Steelers are hoping to repeat history as rookies build 'brotherhood'
- The 'NFL single-game completions leaders' quiz
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Shedeur Sanders makes promise to Browns fans ahead of first regular-season start
Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski announced on Wednesday that rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders will make the first regular-season start of his career when the 2-8 Browns play at the Las Vegas Raiders (2-8) this Sunday. Later on Wednesday, Sanders offered somewhat of a promise to Cleveland supporters who are hoping the fifth-round draft pick could potentially become a savior for the franchise. Shedeur Sanders wants to be "the guy" for the Browns "I know our fans have a lot of expectations and hope," Sanders acknowledged, per Daniel Oyefusi of ESPN. "And I would be doing a disservice to myself and a disservice to the organization if I didn't feel like I am the guy. ...I'm doing everything I need to prepare to be the best version of myself as possible. With the circumstances, everything got to be sped up, and that's great. I like pressure in life. I'm just excited for everything. So, I feel like I'm the guy. I know I'm the guy, but you just have to be able to see." Sanders made his regular-season debut against the Baltimore Ravens this past Sunday after fellow rookie Dillon Gabriel suffered a concussion. In total, Sanders completed 4-of-16 passes for 47 yards with no touchdowns and one interception in what became a 23-16 defeat. He was also sacked twice for a loss of 27 yards. Why Shedeur Sanders is confident he'll be better in second appearance Earlier in the week, Stefanski suggested the coaching staff is confident Sanders will play better after the 23-year-old gets first-team practice reps that were previously reserved for Gabriel. During his Wednesday media availability, Sanders echoed Stefanski's take. "I'm truly excited for that, knowing that I have a piece of [the] offense and a say so and how things fit my eye and place the players exactly where they need to be," Sanders added. "Seeing how they come in and out of routes, seeing the structure of the O-linemen, seeing their set, just having a feeling. I'm more of a feel type of person, so that's how I learn. That's how I do everything. I'm not just, 'Imma just watch it, it's just going to happen.' No, I got to be out there, feel it. I got to move around. It's like so many details that it takes for me to feel my best and play my best, and I'm doing everything in my power and the team's doing everything to help me get prepared." It remains to be seen if a more prepared version of Sanders will be able to relegate a healthy Gabriel to backup duties beyond Week 12. As of Wednesday afternoon, ESPN BET had the Browns as four-point underdogs against the Raiders.
Texas HC Steve Sarkisian gives bold claim on job rumors
Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian has been a popular name in both the NFL and college football coaching cycles. It makes sense, too. He's brought Texas back to being competitive and in the championship hunt, but he also has a wealth of great experience as an assistant in both college and the NFL. He's about as well-rounded a candidate as you'll find, so of course, programs like the Florida Gators, LSU Tigers or even the New York Giants may be interested to see if he's interested. The thing is, though, he's not. Or, at the very least, that's what he's telling the media. He's all-in with the Longhorns, according to comments he made on a recent SEC teleconference call. “I’d like to comment something before I get into our team that has been bothering me now over the past few weeks. That is people reporting that are insinuating that there’s a possibility I could leave the University of Texas, and that is absolutely false and untrue," Sarkisian said (h/t On3). "I’m not going anywhere. Never do I do this because I never want to be a distraction, so I never address these things. At this point, I feel like this is important that I do this because it’s important for our team. It’s important for our university." Steve Sarkisian has deep roots in Austin and is all-in with Texas As if that weren't clear enough, Sarkisian said that he has not had any discussions with anybody about coaching elsewhere. He even went as far as to say that even his agent hasn't spoken to anyone. Sometimes coaches can say publicly that they aren't talking about any opportunities while, in the meantime, their agents are working backchannels and putting something together. He could be lying, of course, because college football history is full of head coaches saying one thing and doing another. A full-throated statement like this seems to be a pretty clear indication that Sarkisian is serious about what he's saying, though. Heck, he went as far as calling Austin home, which is a pretty big deal for a coach to say. Those guys aren't used to staying in one place for too long. With that said, Sarkisian does have two kids actually enrolled at Texas, one on the football team. He has a third kid he wants to go to Texas in the near future. He also just had a baby. Sarkisian has roots in Austin. He also has high aspirations for the Longhorns. “We came here to win championships," he said. "We’ve built a damn good football program over the five years that we’ve been here. We’ve been to two College Football Playoffs. We won a Big 12 Championship. We went to the SEC Championship game in Year 1. We’ve had 23 players drafted the last two years, which is more than any other school in the country and our team GPA is at an all-time high. “Can we please stop putting things out there that you have absolutely zero evidence on? Can we please stop retweeting and putting it back out there as if it’s true? As if it’s the gospel? It is not true."
Steve Spurrier has two endorsements for next Florida HC
Steve Spurrier is a legend for the Florida Gators. Known as "the head ball coach" down in SEC-land, Spurrier was a star both as a player and as a coach for Florida. Heck, the dang field in Gainesville is named after him. That means what he says about the Florida program carries a lot of weight, and he recently revealed that he believes there are only two people who would live up to the expectations and be a great fit for the Gators as they look to replace fired head coach Billy Napier sooner rather than later. “I know Lane Kiffin and I know Eli Drinkwitz,” Spurrier recently said, according to Daniel Hager of On3. “Obviously, either one of those guys would be super if it works out. But, it’s a long way from whoever we’re going to get as our coach right now.” The Gators are currently making a full-court press for Lane Kiffin, but they're not alone in their pursuit of the Ole Miss head coach. While the Gators reportedly flew members of Kiffin's family down to Gainesville to check things out recently, the LSU Tigers also pulled the same trick — hoping to get Kiffin to ultimately come down to Baton Rouge. LSU is probably Florida's biggest competitor for Kiffin right now, but there's also Ole Miss to consider. It's not like the Rebels are going to let a coach who has led them to a 54-19 record over the past six seasons go without a fight. Kiffin would absolutely be a home-run hire for the Gators, though. He's a high-level recruiter and a high-level offensive mind in the SEC. Those are two things that the Gators desperately need in the wake of the middling Napier era. Not only that, but Kiffin has ties to the state. He was the head coach at Florida Atlantic from 2017-19. Eli Drinkwitz an interesting option for Florida if it can't land Lane Kiffin Drinkwitz is another interesting option, though. You'll also notice that there's a trend here for Florida, and that's going after established SEC head coaches. Napier had come from the Sun Belt conference. Drinkwitz has made Missouri a tough out in the SEC, and he's won a ton of football games. His overall record at Mizzou is 45-27, though his record in big games does leave a little to be desired. He's 7-14 against ranked opponents and 0-7 against top-10 teams. Still, Drinkwitz is a young coach at just 42, so the upside is there. He's a big personality who does well on the recruiting trail, and he could do a lot of good things with the firepower of the Florida Gators behind him. There are other options out there for Florida. Washington head coach Jedd Fisch is a Florida alumnus, for instance. If Spurrier has narrowed it down to Kiffin and Drinkwitz in his mind, though, you can bet those in power at Florida are likely thinking the same thing.
Scout shares take on why Vikings' J.J. McCarthy has struggled with accuracy this season
Second-year Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy has mostly played like a work in progress when healthy and on the field this fall. For a piece published on Wednesday, ESPN NFL insider Dan Graziano pointed out that McCarthy is "obviously missing too many throws" at this stage of his development. Graziano spoke with an unnamed "scout with another team" to learn more about McCarthy's struggles. Are Vikings panicking about J.J. McCarthy? "McCarthy's throwing at only one speed -- all fastballs -- and attributed that to trying to be the hero in a situation where he knows his team is counting on him to help it win," Graziano said about his chat with the scout. "The general sense I get from inside the Vikings' building and out is that he just needs time and reps." The Vikings made McCarthy a first-round draft pick in the spring of 2024, but he then spent his entire rookie season recovering from a full meniscus repair. More recently, what became a lingering ankle injury limited McCarthy to just five starts over Minnesota's first 10 games of the ongoing campaign. According to Pro Football Reference, McCarthy began Wednesday ranked last in the league among qualified players with a 52.9 percent completion percentage, a 26.6 adjusted QBR and a 61.7 passer rating for the season. Nevertheless, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler said in Wednesday's article that the Vikings really have "no choice" but to stick with McCarthy over undrafted free agent Max Brosmer. Veteran Carson Wentz previously started when McCarthy was sidelined with the ankle issue, but Wentz has since had season-ending shoulder surgery. What Vikings like about J.J. McCarthy amid struggles "The accuracy is a concern," Fowler added about McCarthy. "There's no hiding from that. Balls are sailing, and that affects the entire offense. McCarthy needs to hit the layups. The Vikings will be working to help him find more consistency as a thrower. From a developmental standpoint, the team still believes in his work ethic and skill set." For what it's worth, McCarthy tossed a go-ahead touchdown pass versus the Chicago Bears with under a minute to play in this past Sunday's matchup between the clubs. He then could only watch as Chicago's Cairo Santos kicked a walk-off game-winning field goal. 4-6 Minnesota next plays at the rival Green Bay Packers (6-3-1) this coming Sunday. As of Wednesday morning, ESPN BET had the Vikings as 6.5-point underdogs for that game.
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