Assessing the Mike Williams Trade to Steelers
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The Pittsburgh Steelers were able to address a main need during Tuesday’s NFL trade deadline.
According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, the Steelers are acquiring New York Jets wide receiver Mike Williams, in exchange for a 2025 fifth round draft pick. ESPN’s Adam Schefter is reporting that Pittsburgh will take on the remainder of Williams’ salary, which is $627,500.
Ever since trading away Diontae Johnson last offseason, Steelers GM Omar Khan wasn’t able to find a true replacement for him. Names such as Brandon Aiyuk and Davante Adams had been the most talked about regarding the Steelers. Mike Williams was another name speculated upon in the summer, and rumors had popped back up in the more recent weeks that Pittsburgh had interest.
Williams, a former Round 1 selection in 2017, had spent the first seven years of his career with the Los Angeles Chargers, which included a pair of 1,000-yard receiving seasons.
After suffering a season-ending ACL injury in Week 3 last year, Williams was released by the Chargers in March, and signed a one-year deal with the Jets, in short order.
In the nine games that Williams played for the Jets, he had only 12 receptions for 166 yards, while getting 53% of the offensive snaps.
Assessment: For the Steelers, the an acquisition of Williams represents a low risk/high reward opportunity. While giving up a fifth round pick seems like a bit of an overpay, the market for receivers was soft, so the Jets were able to have themselves some trade leverage.
Coming off a torn ACL in 2023, it’s probably not realistic to expect Williams to be a Pro Bowl caliber WR again, but if he’s able to perform at half that level in Pittsburgh, it would make him a nice, buy-low addition to the receiving corps.