There will be plenty of position battles to watch when the Pittsburgh Steelers report for training camp on July 28 – wide receiver won’t be one of them. At least not as of right now.
At the time of writing, the Steelers’ wide receiver room is all but set. DK Metcalf, Michael Pittman, Germie Barnard, Ben Skowronek and Kaden Wetjen will be on the 53-man roster, taking up five of the expected six wide receiver spots on the depth chart.
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The latter two will likely hold the No. 5 and No. 6 spots, respectively, as Skowronek is Pittsburgh’s top special teamer and Wetjen will be the top returner, as he was the only player in college football to ever win The Jet Award twice. Meanwhile, Metcalf and Pittman will be the top two receivers, where Bernard will likely be the top slot option. That leaves the fourth spot on the depth chart to Roman Wilson for the time being.
It’s been a rough start to the career of the former Michigan Wolverine. He played in just a small handful of snaps as a rookie, and caught just 12 passes in 2025 while being a healthy scratch for almost the entirety of December, only getting a helmet in Week 17 after DK Metcalf was suspended for the final two games of the year. He did not play in Week 18 against the Baltimore Ravens.
The Steelers currently don’t have legitimate competition on the roster for that No. 4 slot on the depth chart, but there are a pair of free agents with ties to the current staff who could be brought in to potentially earn that roster spot.
Curtis Samuel
Curtis Samuel spent the last two seasons with the Buffalo Bills where he played for new wide receivers coach Adam Henry. And while he certainly didn’t live up to the $24 million contract he was given (largely due to injury), he’s a proven commodity at the position.
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Samuel topped 60 catches in both the 2022 and 2023 seasons while with the Washington Commanders, combining for eight touchdowns across those two years, as well. Over the last two seasons, he caught 38 passes in 20 games while with Buffalo. He’s a versatile piece that’s been used similar to a receiver that shares his surname, Deebo Samuel, as he’s totaled seven rushing touchdowns in his career, as well.
Noah Brown had his best season in Dallas under Mike McCarthy in 2022, hauling in 43 passes for 555 yards and three touchdowns, helping the Cowboys win 12 games that season. He spent six years with the Cowboys, two of which were also spent with Adam Henry, who was McCarthy’s receivers coach in Dallas from 2020-21.
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Brown only played in four games in 2025 due to injury, but was a reliable depth piece in 2023 with the Houston Texans (33 catches, 567 yards, two touchdowns) and in 2024 with Washington (35 catches, 453 yards, one touchdown).
It wouldn’t hurt a thing to bring in one of Samuel or Brown, or both, as competition for that fourth depth chart spot. Wilson will either prove that he is the better option and secure that roster spot, or one of the more proven veterans will win the job and Pittsburgh will ship Wilson elsewhere. It’s a win-win situation, and I’d fully expect the Steelers to bring in at least one veteran at the position to battle in training camp.
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