The Pittsburgh Steelers are looking to add another offensive weapon to the roster.
The Steelers are off to a 3-1 start and coming off a 24-21 win over the Minnesota Vikings in Dublin, and had their bye week last week. With Pittsburgh off to a hot start, the Steelers could be aggressive ahead of the trade deadline.
One area of need is at receiver, and the Steelers are already calling around. According to Steelers insider Andrew Fillipponi, Pittsburgh has checked in with the New Orleans Saints over Rashid Shaheed.
“Source: The Steelers reached out to the Saints during the bye week to take their temperature on WR Rashid Shaheed. Who will be a FA at the end of the year. Big play WR and return man. Trades are being made in the NFL left and right,” Fillipponi wrote on X.
Shaheed signed a one–year, $5.2 million contract extension with the Saints this offseason and is off to a hot start. With New Orleans likely to be near the bottom of the standings, Shaheed’s name has come up in trade talks.
The speedy receiver would be a deep ball threat for Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers’ offense. Shaheed has recorded 22 receptions for 288 yards and 2 touchdowns this season, including an 87-yard touchdown reception, showing his ability to stretch the field.
Rodgers: Steelers Don’t Have a Deep Ball Right Now
Pittsburgh’s offense has struggled this season to move the ball downfield.
Rodgers has done a good job of taking what the defense has given him. But he explained why the deep ball hasn’t been a part of the Steelers’ offense.
“It’s easy playing [against] Cover 2,” Rodgers said. “Playing Cover 2, there’s not gonna be a ton of big shots down the field. Until we get them in one-high, it’s gonna be precision passing short of the sticks… There’s not going to be a lot of shots open down the boundary. So, we’re just trying to be efficient.”
Although Rodgers believes the opposing team’s defense is why the deep ball hasn’t been effective, it also could be due to the receiver core.
If the Steelers do make a move for Shaheed, it could open up the deep ball and make Pittsburgh’s offense that much better.
Mike Tomlin Sees Areas For Improvement on Offense
Although the Steelers are off to a good start, head coach Mike Tomlin believes the offense needs to improve.
Tomlin believes the Steelers’ offense has had some moments, but he believes it could be better.
“All areas, to be quite honest with you,” Tomlin admitted. “We’ve had some good moments. We’ve had some moments that aren’t good. We’ve got to keep pushing, and we’d better win along the way.”
Pittsburgh is averaging just 24 points per game, and the Steelers are atop the AFC North. But, despite every other team losing in the division, Tomlin doesn’t care as he’s just focused on his team.
“I don’t care what happened with other people, particularly last weekend,” Tomlin said. “It’s about us coming off the bye and getting ready for our game this week. I’m not a big-picture guy.”
Pittsburgh hosts the Cleveland Browns in Week 6.
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