One of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ biggest needs this offseason was at wide receiver. The cupboard was nearly bare, with just WR DK Metcalf as the proven threat. So, early in the league year, the Steelers struck a deal to swap late-round picks to pick up WR Michael Pittman Jr.

Pittman automatically becomes the second-best wide receiver on the Steelers’ roster. He doesn’t fix all the issues in the room, and multiple insiders agree that the Steelers will still pursue at least one wide receiver early in the draft. Despite that, the Pittman move is a big one for the Steelers this year. Chris Adamski can’t get over how little it cost the Steelers.

“I kept waiting, it’s been six days now, for the other shoe to drop,” Adamski said on the #1 Cochran Sports Showdown on Sunday night. “Because I see, did the Colts just mangle this? Like the compensation of being just a late round draft swap to me. Michael Pittman’s a really big name. I look at his numbers. I’ve watched Colts games, I know he makes plays. He’s been a consistent producer, he’s been durable. He’s a high pedigree guy.”

The Steelers dropped only 16 picks from their spot in the sixth round to the seventh round to get Pittman. At face value, that is the textbook definition of a steal. Pittman has six years of experience and played in 95 regular-season games with 86 starts. He caught 485 passes for 5,254 yards and 25 touchdowns. He did all that with a lack of consistent quarterback play throughout his career in Indianapolis.

Arguably, Pittman’s best stretch of quarterback play came in the first 11 games of the 2025 season. The Colts brought in QB Daniel Jones, and with him under the center, the team was flying high on offense. In those 11 games, Pittman caught seven touchdowns and had nearly 700 receiving yards. Unfortunately, after Jones tore his Achilles tendon, Pittman’s production dropped heavily. Even though they only played 11 games together, Pittman left quite an impression on Jones, who was “bummed” at Pittman leaving for Pittsburgh.

Not everyone thinks as highly of the move as Adamski, though. Analyst Mike Renner gave the Steelers a D for the deal, thinking that Pittman doesn’t solve anything for them. Yes, Michael Pittman Jr. isn’t going to be the best wide receiver in the league in Pittsburgh. However, I don’t think anyone expects that. He’s not even going to be the top wide receiver for the Steelers.

As for why the Steelers were able to get Pittman so cheaply, the Colts had to offload him one way or another after signing WR Alec Pierce to a big contract extension. The Colts couldn’t afford both Pierce and Pittman. However, the move cost the Steelers so little in draft capital that it’s still a great move for what Pittman brings to the table.

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