Pittsburgh

Steelers

Smith has become the subject of trade rumors after it was reported last week that the Steelers could be targeting the veteran tight end. Last season, Smith broke the Dolphins’ tight end record for receptions (88), receiving yards (884), and receiving touchdowns (8), and is rumored to be seeking a new deal with his current one set to expire at the end of his season. Smith is due to make just $4.8 million this season, but the Dolphins may be more inclined to trade him to a suitor than dish out a new deal for the soon-to-be 30-year-old. Smith’s fantasy stock for the 2025 season would be at its highest if he were to remain with the Dolphins, but it wouldn’t be surprising if his numbers saw a slight dip if Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle are both present and healthy for much of the year.

According to Schultz, “Pittsburgh is believed to be motivated to get a deal done at some point, though there’s still plenty of time before the season.” The report comes roughly three weeks after the Steelers traded George Pickens to the Cowboys, which created the issue at hand. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported earlier today that the Steelers have spoken to the Dolphins about acquiring TE Jonnu Smith, who played under OC Arthur Smith with the Falcons in 2023. The Steelers desperately need a No. 2 wide receiver, but they are simply seeking a receiving weapon, regardless of position.

The talks reportedly occurred “after Smith expressed an interest in reworking his deal,” as he enters the final year of his contract. Schefter adds that “Smith’s preference, per sources, is to stay in Miami under a reworked deal.” Smith turns 30 years old in August, but set the franchise record for a tight end in receptions, receiving yards and touchdowns in 2024. Should the Dolphins and Steelers come to a trade agreement, the move would reunite Smith with his 2023 Falcons offensive coordinator, Arthur Smith, who holds the same role with the Steelers. Smith caught 50-of-69 targets for 582 yards and three touchdowns that year, with the three former statistics marking then-career highs. Still, both he and the Dolphins would be better off with Smith remaining in Miami’s fantasy-friendly passing attack.

Rooney was reiterating a point he made in April, when he said the team was willing to wait on Rodgers to make a decision, but not forever. The enigmatic quarterback has been silent for most of the offseason, leaving teams hanging on whether he will play football at all this year. Pittsburgh has gone all in on Rodgers, only bringing in Mason Rudolph and sixth-round rookie Will Howard to replace their tandem of Justin Fields and Russell Wilson from last year. It’s clear that Rooney’s patience is wearing thin, but there’s not much he can do at this point outside of rolling with Rudolph. If Rodgers wants to be a Steeler, the team is going to welcome him with open arms, even if he continues to slow-play them.

Though technically listed as a defensive tackle, Harmon will ultimately play the 3-4 defensive end role in the Steelers’ defensive front. The 6'5/313 defender is a versatile three-down player who registered 22 tackles, six TFLs, 49 quarterback pressures and four sacks in regular season play last year. He profiles as a long-time Pittsburgh Steeler.

With just nine offensive snaps to his name through two NFL seasons, Broeker will likely be competing for a roster spot this summer. He earned a 62.4 PFF special teams grade last year, logging 42 special teams snaps, 40 of which as a member of the field goal and extra point blocking unit. The Steelers waived C Lecitus Smith in a corresponding move.

“Personal issues” pertaining to Rodgers and members of his inner circle have been cited as one of the primary reasons the 41-year-old quarterback has yet to sign with the Steelers. O’Connor says he has a “pretty good sense” of what those issues were before adding “I don’t think it’s something that would prevent him from playing football.” The Steelers’ underwhelming quarterback room remains one of the more clearcut signs that the door is open for Rodgers and he can come walking through when ready. Rodgers threw for 3,897-28-11 last season with the Jets and would be joining a team with a thin receiver room behind D.K. Metcalf. That said, he’d likely be tasked with playing more of a high-level game manager role with the Steelers in 2025, as Arthur Smith proved once again last season that his team will lean heavily on the run after boasting a league-high 51 percent rush rate in neutral scripts last season.

According to Farabaugh, one source described the Steelers’ inquiry as “a due diligence call” while adding that a trade “doesn’t seem likely to happen” at this time. The Steelers trade George Pickens to the Cowboys just over a week ago, and are now looking at DK Metcalf, Roman Wilson, and Calvin Austin as their top options in three receiver sets. Of those three, Metcalf is the only receiver with notable NFL success, while Wilson effectively redshirted his rookie season due to injuries. Olave caught 32 passes for 400 yards and one touchdown for the Saints last season, but missed nine games due to multiple concussions he suffered. The four-year receiver posted back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons during his first two years in the league, and would provide an immediate upgrade to an underwhelming Steelers receiving corps. Farabaugh reports that in addition to a trade being unlikely, that the Saints do “not seem interested in trading Olave” at this time. The Saints picked up Olave’s fifth-year option last month, and will likely look to extend him in the not too distant future.

Johnson, a third-round draft pick who last month was listed as a co-starter alongside Jaylen Warren on the Pittsburgh depth chart, was a hyper-productive back in Iowa’s zone-based rushing scheme, a system used frequently in Arthur Smith’s run-first offense. Only three college running backs in 2024 logged more zone rushes than Johnson. Johnson’s goals in offseason practices, according to DeFabo, “are to learn the playbook and earn the coaching staff’s trust with the hope of becoming an ‘every-down back’ sooner rather than later.” That might require Johnson to improve his pass blocking. The rookie said he’s worked on that with Warren — one of the best blocking backs in the NFL — in recent days.

They will be the first team to play back-to-back weeks in different countries outside the United States. The Vikings will face off against the Steelers in the first-ever NFL regular season game in Dublin on Stepember 28, then play the Browns in London the following weekend. It could be a tough travel schedule for the Vikings, though the Jaguars have played back-to-back international games in recent years. Those games were in the same country, however. The Vikings-Steelers game could be intriguing if Aaron Rodgers is under center for Pittsburgh after trying and failing to generate interest for his services in Minnesota this offseason.