Calvin

Austin III

Austin missed the entirety of his rookie season with a foot injury and then played sparingly in 2023, catching 17 passes for 183 yards and one score. The speedy wideout earned a larger role in 2024 and caught 36 passes for 548 yards and four scores. Austin quietly finished the season third on the Steelers in yards and second in touchdowns. He also contributed on special teams, returning one punt for a touchdown. Austin has likely topped out a splash-play specialist, but that will keep on the Steelers’ roster for a contract year in 2025.

Austin had gone for 65 yards in his previous two contests, but didn’t even reach the halfway point of that mark in the blowout loss. The 25-year-old did most of his damage in the second half, and damage might be too strong of a word. Austin will be in the WR5 vicinity for the final game of the regular season against the Bengals.

A 44-yard acrobatic grab down the right sideline in the second half propelled Austin to a team-leading 65 yards through the air, leading the team in receiving for the second consecutive game in the absence of George Pickens. The Steelers have dropped two straight games to fall into a tie atop the division with the Ravens. With only two games remaining in the regular season, next week’s matchup against the 14-1 Chiefs could prove pivotal in the final standings in the AFC North.

Austin’s day was buoyed by a 31-yard reception that he made in the third quarter on a drive that ended with a Steelers fumble just three plays later. Austin has gone for 65 or more yards in two of his last five games but has a combined 32 receiving yards in the other three games. He’s well off the fantasy radar in Week 16 against the Ravens.

Austin could see increased target volume if George Pickens (hamstring) were to miss Week 14 though Austin has hardly been a reliable producer this season. He should be considered a WR5.

Austin making the leap from a limited participant to a full participant just days after suffering a concussion is a good sign for his Week 14 availability. There’s a chance the third-year receiver will be cleared in time for this weekend’s game against the Browns, although we’ll know for sure on Friday. Austin caught two passes for 29 yards and a touchdown in last week’s win over the Bengals, but should be viewed a boom or bust WR4 in fantasy if active.

It’s presumably a limited session for the young receiver. Austin took multiple hard hits in Week 13 and eventually left for a concussion check. He was later ruled out. Being able to practice in any capacity during the first session of the week is a good sign for him. The splash-play specialist has 22 grabs for 383 yards and four scores this year.

Calvin Austin took a huge hit to the head on the first offensive play of the game for the Steelers but remained in the game. He caught both of his subsequent targets for 29 yards and a touchdown before taking another huge hit near the sideline on the final drive of the first half. That second hit appeared to be enough to have gotten him sent for an evaluation and he will not return to the game. That will likely mean more work for Van Jefferson, Cordarrelle Patterson, and Ben Skowronek.

Both the catches and yards were Austin’s second most of the season, while the touchdown was only his third. He contributed a 46-yard grab down the field before hauling in a 23-yard scoring strike where Russell Wilson split the defense over the middle. Austin is capable of pop-up efforts like this evening, but he doesn’t do it anywhere close to frequently enough to be a reliable WR4.

The diminutive speedster scored the first touchdown of the game on a punt return in the third quarter and added his second touchdown on the following possession, a 29-yard catch up the seam. His role on the offense remains tertiary to George Pickens and the run game, meaning he is unlikely to return many useful fantasy weeks playing in an offense typically content to manage the game.