Pat McAfee knows Michael Pittman Jr. and Pittsburgh well, and he gave his coming to the Steelers a ringing endorsement. The former Colts wide receiver recently appeared on McAfee’s show, and the host addressed Steelers fans. Having played for the Colts for a long time, he followed Pittman’s whole career through Indianapolis’ ups and downs.

“When I talked about you going to another team”, he told Pittman, “I actually said, ‘This guy’s willing to die on the football field’. You are all in. Whenever we were hearing issues about the culture and the buy-in at the Indianapolis Colts, it was like, you were the one that we talked about. ‘This guy will always show up’”.

A second-generation player, Michael Pittman entered the league understanding what it meant to be a professional. He learned from his father the stakes of being in the NFL and what it takes to have a successful career. Those sorts of traits tend to be rewarded, and McAfee pushed for him to get his.

“I even said when Jonathan Taylor did the holdout and got paid for it, it was like, ‘Michael Pittman Jr. should be the next one”, he said. “Just put a hoodie on, sunglasses on, and do it’. You held us together for a long time, and we all have a lot of respect”.

The Colts signed Pittman to a three-year, $70 million contract in 2024. The Steelers would have inherited the final year of his deal, but they essentially gave him a new contract. It’s a step down in APY, but it reflects where he is in his career. Six years into his career and nearing 30, he’s not a spring chicken. And he hasn’t quite put up the elite numbers, but better quarterback play can help that.

And Michael Pittman, McAfee believes, can help the Steelers a lot. That’s his conclusion after following his career throughout his time with the Colts. “I think our messaging to people back in Pittsburgh”, he said, “is like, this guy, it’s in his name. Pitt Man. Like, he is supposed to be a Steeler”.

Not because of his name, of course, but because of his professionalism and play style. It doesn’t hurt that Pittman is 6-4, 223 pounds, either. The Steelers do like their big wide receivers when they can get them. After all, they traded for DK Metcalf last year.

Of course, they need their pairing of Metcalf and Pittman to really hit this year. Metcalf didn’t have the season the Steelers were hoping for last year. What will be different this year? They may have the same quarterback, but we don’t know for sure yet.

We do know that Arthur Smith is gone, and Mike McCarthy will be running his offense. He always knew how to get production out of wide receivers. Can he turn Michael Pittman and DK Metcalf into the pair the Steelers need? It’s been a while since they’ve had two 1,000-yard receivers.