Steelers takeaways: George Pickens’ future, T.J. Watt’s contract and more

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PALM BEACH, Fla. — The Pittsburgh Steelers’ largest looming question at the NFL’s annual league meeting was obvious: When and what will Aaron Rodgers decide?

Though neither coach Mike Tomlin nor general manager Omar Khan provided a definitive answer, owner and team president Art Rooney II expressed optimism that the four-time MVP and Super Bowl champion will wrap up his process “soon.”

“We keep hearing that (Rodgers is) headed in our direction,” Rooney said Tuesday. “All signs are positive so far.”

As Rodgers watch continues, believe it or not, there are other positions on the roster other than quarterback. Here are some takeaways from Khan, Tomlin and Rooney.

Steelers say they want to keep Pickens

George Pickens’ tenure in Pittsburgh is approaching a crossroads, as the 2022 second-round pick is entering the fourth and final year of his rookie contract. After the Steelers acquired DK Metcalf, it was fair to question what it would mean for Pickens’ future.

Speaking Monday, Khan — who last year said he had “full faith” in Kenny Pickett before trading the QB, and earlier this offseason said he hoped to re-sign either Justin Fields or Russell Wilson before letting both walk — gave no indication that Pickens could be on the trade block.

“You need more than one receiver in this league,” the GM said. “We’re fortunate we have George (Pickens) and Calvin (Austin II) and excited about what Roman (Wilson is) going to be able to do for us.”

Tomlin echoed those sentiments.

“I don’t know that (the Metcalf acquisition) affects (Pickens) in any way,” Tomlin said. “The strength of the pack is the pack. And when you have eligibles that are schematic problems for those that defend you, it creates more opportunity for all involved. And I think that’s probably the only lens through which I’ve looked at that to this point.

“As a guy who grew up on the defensive side of the ball, man, when you’ve got multiple people schematically that you’ve got to work to minimize, it really challenges you in terms of some of the things that you do. We see similar challenges within our division, for example. And so we’re excited about putting together a group that has that type of collective presence.”

Khan also provided more background on the Metcalf trade, saying it came together quickly, in a week or less.

“I can’t remember who called who first,” Khan said. “The conversation just kind of took on a life of its own from there.”

Speaking at the combine in February, Khan expressed his desire to land a quarterback first and then target a receiver who would fit that passer’s skill set. Though the process ultimately unfolded in the opposite order, it might end up helping the Steelers secure their QB, as Rodgers worked out with Metcalf in California recently.

Khan said the uncertainty at quarterback had no impact on his pursuit of the 6-foot-4, 235-pound receiver.

“When you have the opportunity to obtain a player of that caliber — at least the way we see DK — I don’t think you can wait around at those opportunities,” Khan said. “You have to jump at them, and it worked out. He wanted to be here. We wanted him here and weren’t going to let that opportunity go.”

Khan ‘hopeful’ Watt finishes his career in Pittsburgh

The Steelers’ plan to pay T.J. Watt this offseason might be getting more expensive.

Recently, the Cleveland Browns convinced Myles Garrett to drop his trade request by making the star edge rusher the highest-paid defender in the NFL with a deal that carries a $40 million annual average. The contracts for all players continue to rise as the salary cap goes up. Edge rushers, in particular, are reaping the rewards. The top 13 paid players are all quarterbacks. Wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase checks in at 14th and Garrett is now 15th.

“I don’t expect salaries to go down,” Khan said. “I expect them to keep increasing year-to-year.”

The highest-paid defensive players are all edge rushers. Behind Garrett, the Texans’ Danielle Hunter just signed a one-year, $35.6 million extension, the Raiders’ Max Crosby is just behind him at $35.5 million annually and 49ers edge rusher Nick Bosa makes $34 million.

Watt was the highest-paid defensive player in league history when he signed a four-year, $112 million extension ($28 million per year) in September 2021. He’s now entering the last year of that contract, which is when the Steelers have historically extended productive players like Watt, a perennial Defensive Player of the Year candidate.

“I’ll just say that I’m very hopeful T.J. will finish his career as a Steeler,” Khan said.

Draft maneuvering is possible, especially with expected comp picks

The Steelers don’t have a second-round pick after trading for Metcalf, but the team expects extra picks in 2026 via the compensatory pick formula. Per Over The Cap’s Nick Korte, the Steelers are on track to receive four additional picks in 2026, the maximum permitted under the rule.

Indeed!https://t.co/I22Yqrw9YAhttps://t.co/GMkCB5vDER pic.twitter.com/d9U6wSZq51

— Nick Korte (@nickkorte) March 25, 2025

Korte projects the Steelers will get a third-round pick for the departure of Dan Moore Jr., a fourth for Justin Fields, a fifth for Russell Wilson and a sixth for James Daniels. The Fields and Wilson picks could increase in value if those QBs hit incentives.

Those picks could help Pittsburgh trade up in 2026, when the quarterback class is considered stronger. They cannot be traded before they become official until next spring, but knowing surplus picks are likely coming could give the Steelers flexibility to trade other picks to move up in this year’s draft.

“I think you guys have gotten to know me over the last couple years,” said Khan, who earned the “Khan Artist” nickname for his aggressive maneuvering in the draft. “I think all options are on the table, staying put, moving up, moving back. I’m open to anything if it makes sense for us.”

Steelers eyeing RBs in ‘uniquely deep draft’

When Najee Harris left for the Chargers, he took 1,097 career carries with him (the fifth-most over the past four years). That includes 263 last season.

As a team that ran the ball fourth most in the NFL last year, the Steelers have decisions to make and plenty of opportunity to do so. Jaylen Warren, who has shown promise in largely a third-down role through his first three years, is one candidate. Recent acquisition Kenneth Gainwell is another and brings a new element to that room.

“Obviously, the acquisition of Kenny Gainwell is something that we’re really excited about,” Tomlin said. “That’s a guy that we’ve competed against. Man, it seems like he made a bunch of significant plays in the flat against us a couple months back that were significant, game-altering plays.”

Tomlin is often heard in practice yelling, “Don’t get beat to the flat.” So much so that the team printed up shirts that read DGBTTF.

“You guys that watch us work routinely know how much we value routine things like winning in the flat, whether you’re a ball carrier, a ball catcher or tackler,” Tomlin said. “So that’s a skill set that really stood out to us, but he’s got a well-rounded game. He’s a capable and willing special teams player. Plays a lot on possession down ball.”

Though Tomlin and Khan expressed confidence in Warren and highlighted one of Gainwell’s high-end attributes, you can also read between the lines that the Steelers will seriously consider several running backs in the draft.

“Division of labor is dictated by the collection of talent,” Tomlin said. “We’re still in the process of acquiring players.”

Tomlin sees what many others do when they look at the running back class, calling it a “uniquely deep draft at that position.” The Athletic’s draft guru, Dane Brugler, ranked eight backs inside his Top 100. The Steelers have already done their homework on many of them, including visiting with Ohio State’s tandem of TreVeyon Henderson (ranked 49th by Brugler) and Quinshon Judkins (70th). They also hosted Tennessee’s Dylan Sampson for a pre-draft visit. Several other backs, including some Day 1, Day 2 and Day 3 options, also are expected to visit Pittsburgh.

“I’ve gotten an opportunity to kind of meet a lot of them and see some of them, whether it’s working in (Indianapolis at the combine) or their pro day,” Tomlin said. “There’s a lot of talent in that group.”

Benton’s versatility provides flexibility

On the Steelers’ official roster, Keeanu Benton is listed vaguely as a “defensive lineman,” which is appropriate. He’s the starting nose tackle in the Steelers’ base Okie defense, but the 2023 second-round pick is more than that.

“He’s got versatility, but that’s why we took him that high,” Tomlin said. “(There’s) not a lot of nose play in today’s game based on matchups and so forth. We spent about 80 percent of our time in sub-package football. And so his versatility is an asset to him and us, where he’s not reduced by offensive personnel that’s potentially on the field or not.”

That could pay dividends for Pittsburgh on draft night. The Steelers have a glaring hole up front after Larry Ogunjobi’s departure and need to plan for Cam Heyward’s eventual retirement, even though he performed at a Pro Bowl-level last year. Because Benton is not just a nose, Pittsburgh can target a defensive lineman who might line up next to Heyward and Benton or between them.

Benton played 301 snaps on first down, 202 on second, 96 on third and 14 on fourth in 2024, according to TruMedia. Among interior defensive linemen, Heyward played the most on third down with 151 snaps, and Ogunjobi was third with 77 snaps.

When asked about adding to the defensive line, Khan pointed out that free-agent signee Daniel Ekuale started last year for the Patriots, and 2024 draft pick Logan Lee is returning from injury. However, for a team that’s invested heavily in the offensive line and just lost to its biggest rival in the playoffs by giving up nearly 300 rushing yards, it would be a surprise if the Steelers don’t make a significant move on the defensive line.

“The trenches are important,” Khan said. “I’ve always talked about those big guys on both sides of the ball. We understand where we’re at.”

Change to kick return rule directly impacts Steelers

The NFL approved a rule change Tuesday that will move the ball to the 35-yard line after touchbacks, up from the 30-yard line last year, with the hope of encouraging teams not to kick the ball into the end zone, therefore leading to more returns. The Steelers must think critically about the implications. They finished last in 2024 with a return average of 23 yards.

On the same day the NFL approved the introduction of the dynamic kickoff a year ago, Pittsburgh signed one of the NFL’s best all-time returners, Cordarrelle Patterson. However, he averaged 21.8 yards on 11 returns, the lowest of any player who returned at least eight kicks. The other player who typically aligned deep, Warren, averaged 25.2 yards on his nine returns.

“I’d like to perform better, but I think that we all probably share that posture,” Tomlin said. “Lack of familiarity probably was a component of that.”

Tomlin added that Gainwell will be a candidate to return.

Odds and ends

• Tomlin was brief when asked why the Steelers moved on from secondary coach Grady Brown and brought back Gerald Alexander (who worked with the team in 2023 before one year in Las Vegas) as defensive backs coach.
“Grady’s contract was up,” Tomlin said. “GA was available to us. We had a real good experience with him, and so we brought him back.”
Asked if there could be any more changes to his staff, Tomlin said he’s “open to it.”

• Tomlin on Broderick Jones’ likely transition to left tackle: “We drafted Broderick to play well, no matter where we play him. And that is my expectation. That is his expectation as well.”

• Punter Cam Johnston, who sustained a season-ending knee injury in September in his first game as a Steeler, is expected to be ready by training camp. Inside linebacker Cole Holcomb, who spent most of the 2024 season rehabbing from a 2023 knee injury, is also healthy.

(Photo of Mike Tomlin: Jim Rassol / Imagn Images)

This news was originally published on this post .

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