Pittsburgh

Steelers

Pelissero recently reported that the Steelers do not plan to trade Watt, and Watt’s record-setting goals are well known, so the most recent report makes sense. The team will do its best to ensure team-friendly outs exist later in the deal, but for now, Watt appears to be on track for a hefty payday sometime before September 7. Pelissero states succinctly, Watt’s expected extension “is going to be north of Myles Garrett—it is going to be upwards of $40 million per year.”

Khan was promoted to his current post in 2022. His successful draft picks include WR George Pickens, CB Joey Porter Jr., DT Keanu Benton, LB Nick Herbig and C Zach Frazier. Khan acquired veterans WR DK Metcalf, TE Jonnu Smith and CB Jalen Ramsey via trade this offseason. It’s hard to completely separate what Khan has done from the fact that ownership has wanted a consistent winner, but this does feel like a gesture solidifying that Khan will be in charge of finding the next Steelers quarterback of the future after Aaron Rodgers.

Rodgers did not sign with the Steelers until late in the offseason, leaving him little time to build chemistry with the team’s receivers through offseason workouts. However, Rodgers posted a photo on social media with WRs DK Metcalf, Calvin Austin, Roman Wilson, Scotty Miller, and Ben Skowronek and TE Pat Freiermuth. He had invited offensive skill players to work out with him and these six have taken up the offer thus far. Metcalf and Freiermuth are likely to be two of the top options in the Steelers offense, with Austin and Wilson mixing in behind. Newly acquired Jonnu Smith is not there, though he just joined the team this week. Rodgers is headed for a final season in Pittsburgh and is looking to build further rapport with his pass-catchers for one last hurrah.

“This isn’t going to be as easy as the last contract with T.J., where he was in his prime ... they saw a little bit of a decline last year,” Dulac believes. Ja’Marr Chase currently holds the record in average per year at $40.25 million for a non-quarterback, though Myles Garrett’s $88.8 million in guarantees dwarfs it. It’s unclear which dollar figure Watt is coming after, but what is clear is that this could drag on well into training camp and perhaps, as Dulac suggests, right up to the beginning of the regular season. With Trey Hendrickson and Micah Parsons also vying to be in the highest-paid non-quarterback space, we have plenty of contract drama ahead of us on the edge during training camp and the preseason.

Kaboly said Boyd is holding out for a deal that would pay him more than the veteran minimum, and believes several teams are lowballing him ahead of training camp. Boyd, entering his age-31 season, has said he would be interested in joining the wideout-needy Steelers. He would likely profile as the team’s WR3 behind DK Metcalf and Calvin Austin. Boyd in 2024 had 39 catches for 390 yards over 16 games with the Titans — his lowest totals since 2017.

DeFabo suggested Rodgers’ preference for a quarterback-centric, pass-first offense will clash with Smith’s system, one of the run-heaviest in the NFL over the past five seasons. There could be adjustments made to Smith’s offense that could make it more balanced in 2025. “It will be interesting to see how it all comes together in training camp,” DeFabo said. This is the latest sign that the Steelers might not be as stubbornly run-heavy as many believe they’ll be. Smith said in early June that that team did not acquire DK Metcalf and Rodgers “to go run the wishbone” in 2025. “Every year will be different,” Smith said. “You evolve with who you have personnel-wise, and strategically there are things you want to evolve to. ... I’ve had a lot of different quarterbacks with a lot of different skill sets. Your job as a coach is to play to the strengths of your players. You adapt to the personnel you have.” A more balanced offensive attack could make Metcalf and newly-acquired Jonnu Smith more interesting for fantasy purposes.

According to Pelissero, the team’s focus remains on extending Watt’s deal, which is set to expire at the end of this season. The veteran pass rusher has been working toward a new deal all offseason, and skipped mandatory minicamp while awaiting a new deal. Watt’s situation recently came back into the light when it was announced the Steelers would be giving Jalen Ramsey a $1.5 million raise in 2025 after acquiring him from the Dolphins, but it sounds like the hope is Watt and the Steelers will eventually figure things out.

As expected, it appears the Steelers have already confirmed their intention to use Smith in a versatile way. During his 2023 breakout with the Falcons in Arthur Smith’s offense, Smith lined up 29 times in the backfield, 274 times as an inline tight end, and 268 times in the slot, per PFF. We would expect to see similar usage with the Steelers in 2025, which could relegate Pat Freiermuth to more of a traditional inline tight end role after he posted a career high 268 slot snaps last season. Before last season, Freiermuth had never lined up more than 180 times in the slot. The lack of receiving upside on Pittsburgh’s roster could keep both tight ends somewhat fantasy relevant this season, but Smith undoubtedly has the higher upside heading into training camp.

Smith will also sign a one-year, $12 million extension with the Steelers, per Schefter, which puts him under contract through the 2026 season. Smith broke out for 88-884-8 in his first and only season with the Dolphins, which came a year after he went for 50-582-3 with the Falcons under current Steelers OC Arthur Smith. There was mutual interest between the two sides to reunite in Pittsburgh once it became apparent that the Dolphins were unlikely to offer Smith the new extension he wanted following his breakout. His arrival to the Steel City makes for an interesting one from a fantasy perspective. For now, Pat Freiermuth remains on the roster and is only a year from signing a four-year, $48.4 million extension. The lack of talent in the Steelers’ passing game could create an environment where both tight ends co-exist, but it’s hard to ignore the fact that the Steelers now have two tight ends who ranked top-12 in slot snaps last season. The departure from Miami likely means Smith’s fantasy stock will take a hit in Pittsburgh’s run-heavy offense, although his ability to lineup all over the formation should work to his advantage. It’s safe to assume Freiermuth’s stock takes a hit as well, but we would expect to see plenty of 12 personnel from the Steelers this season.