Charlie Cummings decides which Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver he’d rather have going forward: Calvin Austin III or Marquez Valdes-Scantling?

To the surprise of many, the Pittsburgh Steelers’ offense has been strong this season. Aaron Rodgers is playing resurgent football, the backfield has been productive, and DK Metcalf looks like the WR1 they traded for in the offseason. But it’s been tricky to figure out if the offense can sustain a second productive wide receiver in fantasy football.

So far, Calvin Austin III has been the guy at the second wideout spot. However, the signing of Marquez Valdes-Scantling, a former Rodgers target in Green Bay, casts some doubt on that. Who is going to be the flex play from now on between these two wideouts?

Analysis

It hasn’t been a super productive season for Calvin Austin III. He’s pulled in 19 catches for 223 yards and two scores on the year. But, in the hierarchy of Steelers receivers, he’s fourth in total targets on the team behind Metcalf, Jonnu Smith, and Kenneth Gainwell. His skill as a deep threat makes him a solid WR2 in this offense.

However, it seems the trust is eroding. After taking 86.4% of the offensive snaps in the first two weeks, he’s down to 64.7% over the last four appearances. Mike Tomlin is trying, rather unsuccessfully, to see if Roman Wilson can replace him. This has forced the front office to look elsewhere.

Enter MVS. Valdes-Scantling is on the record saying he came to Pittsburgh for Aaron Rodgers and trusts in their connection from the Green Bay days. As a situational deep threat, he could bring real value in fantasy with a QB who can still spin a tremendous deep ball.

But the Steelers seem to be throwing cold water on his chance for an instant impact. Tomlin stated that MVS is a “practice squader”, and that he doesn’t discuss players on the practice squad. Steelers beat writer Ray Fittipaldo thinks that it will be a few weeks before Valdes-Scantling will be added to the 53-man roster.

One of the main problems is that on game day, Pittsburgh dresses five receivers. Two of those receivers play significant roles on special teams. To get in the lineup, MVS would have to jump one of Austin III or Wilson and turn them into healthy scratches. It leaves us wondering what to make of their wideout room.

The verdict

With Rodgers’ influence, MVS may get into the lineup for three-wide or two-wide sets down the stretch. His ability to take the top off the defense remains a threat. But with Pittsburgh slow-playing his addition to the roster, Austin III remains the preferred flex play for the rest of the regular season. It’ll be some time before his role is threatened.