The Pittsburgh Steelers are in the search for a wide receiver.

This isn’t breaking news.

The team’s search for a receiver to help complete their receiver room started before the 2024 NFL Draft. Reports circulated about them potentially trading for a San Francisco 49ers receiver, both Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk, Courtland Sutton and others were all rumored to be linked to trade talks.

No trade happened.

After the draft, even after drafting Roman Wilson in the 3rd Round, the search narrowed as they were told “no” by almost every team they attempted to target a receiver. The focus went on Aiyuk, and that saga lasted through training camp and the preseason.

No trade happened.

Even then, the Steelers were interested in bringing in a receiver, and any time a player wanted out of a particular situation, the Steelers were interested. Davante Adams wanted out of Las Vegas, and the Steelers were interested in Adams, but the Raiders and the New York Jets agreed to a deal.

No trade happened.

For the Steelers fan base, this has been an exercise in futility. Every time a receiver is potentially on the move, the Steelers are in the mix. It just so happens they are the ones who seemingly always come up empty-handed. In my opinion, this boils down to two factors which are important.

First, the team is still trying to address a position of need. Omar Khan and company could absolutely just throw their hands up in the air and say, “Oh well, we tried and missed. We’ll address receiver this offseason.” But that hasn’t happened. They’ve tried this entire season, and they are still pounding the pavement in attempts to find a receiver who could help round out the room.

Second, and lastly, some might bemoan Khan and the front office for not being aggressive enough to land a big fish. This comes down to whether or not you feel the Steelers are a receiver away from being a genuine Super Bowl contender. The Steelers are certainly not the organization to send huge assets, both financial and draft capital, to get a player who they don’t think will put them over the top. Some would suggest the team is too frugal, but at the same time is over-paying for a player always the answer?

The Steelers, in typical Khan fashion, are now playing the waiting game. With the trade deadline looming on November 5th, they’ll have ample time to see what they have on their current roster before making a move. You might read that last sentence and think, “To see what they have? It’s Week 8!” and you’d be right. But what I’m referring to is the offense with Russell Wilson at quarterback. In his lone start Wilson threw for 264 yards and 2 TDs, but threw passes to 7 different receivers, all but one had over 15 yards of receiving.

There is a strong chance the Steelers see Wilson against a solid New York Giants defense and believe they don’t need the big splash player at the trade deadline, but maybe a savvy veteran who might not cost them much, even if it’s just as a rental player for the duration of the 2024 season.

The Steelers search for a wide receiver continues, and how this week, and especially next week with the team on a bye, plays out will be fascinating. With the Steelers off next week, Khan can not just play the waiting game, but can slow play other teams who might be looking to ship players off their roster to gain assets with their season likely already over after Week 9.

This will be interesting to see how it plays out, but if I were a betting man I’d bet the Steelers do trade for a receiver, just not a big name player which would quell the fan base’s desire for a marquee receiver.

The search continues…