Steelers Read & React: Trade deadline and midseason awards

This week, Ryan and Ryland give their final thoughts about potential moves ahead of the NFL trade deadline, hand out some midseason awards, and give some predictions about the rest of the season.

The Steelers have made it to their bye week as division leaders. Looking back at the panic surrounding Pittsburgh’s preseason struggles, it’s safe to say few predicted the Steelers would be 6-2. While we here at Read & React were hopeful about the Steelers’ playoff chances, we both foresaw a third-place finish in our preseason predictions. Call us pleasantly surprised as the Steelers remain a reminder that nothing in football is certain until the games are played and the final whistle has blown.

In this week’s edition, we’ll look back at the Steelers’ season so far and give out some midseason awards. But before that, one final look at the Nov. 5 trade deadline.

The Ravens just added former Steeler Diontae Johnson via trade. With all the talk of the Steelers needing to trade for a receiver, what’s your confidence level that the Steelers make a trade for a receiver before the deadline?

RB: On a scale of one to 10 I’m at a very tentative six. The Steelers have seemingly been close to a number of trades throughout the summer and first half of the season, so we know there’s interest. Wide receivers have been getting traded all over the league for the past few weeks, so we know there’s precedent. But the Steelers also haven’t gotten a deal done yet, and the market is getting drier and drier.

Beyond that, Van Jefferson and Calvin Austin III both had great games on Monday, which might cause the Steelers’ front office to decide the room is good enough and hold onto their draft capital (They shouldn’t, but they might).

But until the trade deadline passes, I’m leaning towards the Steelers making a move just due to how much effort they’ve put into adding a wide receiver already this season. Maybe they finally get a deal done, albeit not a blockbuster one, in crunch time — even if I’m not the most confident it happens.

RP: Since Ryland introduced a scale, I’ll say I’m a three at the moment. Anything could happen, and I want a trade, but my skepticism about a move being made grows with each passing day. It’s been no secret that the Steelers have made calls around the league as far back as this summer. Over the past three weeks, the Steelers have played the Raiders (Davante Adams, Jakobi Meyers), Jets (Mike Williams) and Giants (Darius Slayton). Those teams employ some of the top names rumored to be available. The Steelers had opportunities to speak about a trade in person with each of those front offices, and yet no deals have been made.

We’ve seen a handful of receivers traded already and another potential target lost to injury (Christian Kirk). At this point, it feels like it’ll be Mike Williams — if the Jets lose on Thursday night — or no one at all.

Before the season, the Steelers brass said they were prepared to ride out the season with the guys they had. We have all hoped a trade materializes, but I think the Steelers are being cautious. They’ve seen how bad teams throw around draft picks for temporary solutions. With some of the upcoming contracts — which I’ll discuss near the end of this article — I think they’re wary to trade away picks from the second day of the draft for a guy who could be out the door in three months. They’ve managed to hit on starters with several of those second and third-round picks in recent years and doing so is crucial when dealing with the salary cap. I get the impression general manager Omar Khan isn’t willing to leverage the future unless he’s certain he’s getting a bona fide star or a long-term solution.

Midseason Awards

Best Play

RP: I’ll go with a play from Sunday Night Football, and take Beanie Bishop Jr.’s first career interception.

Several things to like about this play. For starters, this could be the game we look back on as the moment the light turned on for Bishop. He went through some typical rookie struggles earlier in the season, but on this play Bishop impresses both physically and mentally.

On this play, the Jets are up 15-6 and running the two-minute drill. With New York set to receive the kickoff coming out of halftime, they have an opportunity to score twice before the Steelers offense gets back on the field. It’s a big moment.

New York lines up in empty and with running back Breece Hall outside on the left and ultimately had a few different options here. With the coverage the Steelers are playing and the complimentary routes, Rodgers could have made the easy completion to his back running the drag route and seen if Hall could make some defenders miss. He passes on that because it would take a lot of time off the clock and if the defenders tackle soundly, it would have been for a minimal gain.

With the power of hindsight, it’s pretty clear that Davante Adams would have been the right player to target on this play. With the coverage shell the Steelers showed, Adams was wide open for a catch along the sideline after he runs a fade route. At worst he picks up the first down and stops the clock. At best, he creates some yards after the catch with James Pierre trailing and Fitzpatrick having to close the gap from the middle of the field.

But that’s what makes what Bishop did that more impressive and crucial to this play.

New York lines up star receiver Garrett Wilson in the slot. Rodgers and Wilson haven’t always reached the high expectations that were set for them, but there is trust there. Enough trust that when Rodgers sees Bishop start his back pedal with his hips turned towards the sideline, he knows immediately he wants to rip the ball to Wilson running the in-breaking route behind Bishop. He doesn’t even look Adams’ way, despite their long-established chemistry, because the smart thing to do is take the matchup Wilson should easily win.

What he doesn’t take into account is that the undrafted and undersized rookie corner moves better than he expects. As the ball starts to leave Rodgers’ hand, Bishop fluidly flips his hips, closes on the route and makes the one-armed snag for the interception. The Steelers would go on to score before the half, and the rest is history. This is the stuff that should get you fired up.

RB: Recency bias, I know, but Monday night had a couple of great candidates — the one I’ll go with will be the big Russell Wilson/George Pickens connection in the fourth quarter. Yes, the Calvin Austin III punt return was more impressive, but this play means more for the future of the 2024-25 Steelers.

After a somewhat rusty debut against the Jets, Wilson finally showed off a perfect “moon ball” here, placing a flawless pass downfield for Pickens to snatch out of the air. The protection held up and the play-action worked. This is the sort of play Arthur Smith wants to make the Steelers’ bread and butter this season, and they ran it to perfection against the Giants:

Best Offensive Player

Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images

RB: Dare I say Russell Wilson? It’s been just two games, but with the exception of a rough first half against the Jets, Wilson has clearly upgraded the Pittsburgh offense. The passing game is more consistent and pushing the ball downfield successfully. That, in turn, has helped open up the run game. Wilson is creating big plays, sustaining drives, and still avoiding turnovers for the most part. The Steelers’ group of pass-catchers is more involved.

I think there’s other valid answers to this question, namely George Pickens and Zach Frazier, but I don’t think anyone has had a greater positive impact on offense than Wilson this year.

RP: I think there is a case to be made for Fields, Najee, or even Russ, but ultimately I’m going to go with Zach Frazier. Frazier has missed the past couple weeks due to injury, but I cannot say enough about how he instantly looked like one of the best centers in the game.

The NFL is having a bit of a center renaissance this year with Frazier and fellow rookies Graham Barton and Jackon Powers-Johnson (who debuted last week) all looking impressive early in their careers.

The Steelers’ offensive line has been a rollercoaster, but from the moment he stepped onto the field, Frazier has been both consistent and nasty. With the rest of the line starting to gel over the past month — paving the way for three-straight 100-yard games for Najee Harris — I’m excited to see what heights the team will reach once he returns.

Best Defensive Player

RB: I momentarily considered going with DeShon Elliott here but there’s no real answer other than T.J. Watt. He’s already on pace for another season with double-digit sacks, but he’s also added 10 tackles for loss, four forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, and two passes defensed — a number of those big plays have come at clutch moments, as well. He demands constant attention from opposing offenses and still finds ways to win games for the Steelers. He’s unquestionably the team’s Defensive Player of the Year.

RP: TJ Watt. All respect to Cam Heyward and the rest of the defense, but it’s unquestionably Watt.

Best Offseason Addition

Photo by Lauren Leigh Bacho/Getty Images

RB: Obvious, I know, but the answer here is DeShon Elliott. He’s had 58 total tackles, two tackles for loss, four passes defensed, and an interception, forced fumble, and fumble recovery. He’s been all over the field and one of the Steelers’ best defenders near the line of scrimmage. His physical style of play is tailor-made for AFC North football, and he’s been a top-five player on the Steelers in 2024. Elliott has drawn some well-deserved All-Pro buzz, and he’s on just a two-year, $6 million deal. Just a home run signing.

An honorable mention goes to Russell Wilson, and even Justin Fields for that matter. Quarterback play remains the most important element of winning in the NFL, and the Steelers are 6-2.

RP: As Ryland stated, DeShon Elliott is the obvious answer. Since Bickley already did a good job laying out what Elliott’s brought to the team, I’ll go a different route for the sake of variety. This might be cheating, but I’m going with an in-season addition Corliss Waitman who was signed after Cameron Johnston suffered an unfortunate season-ending injury in September.

Punters aren’t sexy, I get it. But Waitman deserves some flowers for his contributions to this team. The Steelers are a team that’s made it clear they are comfortable playing in close games. Often in those types of games, it’s the finer details that give the winning team the edge. Insert Waitman.

Waitman doesn’t have the longest punt of the season or the highest average per punt, but he has been surgical. He is tied for 10th in the league with 14 different punts downed inside the opponent’s 20-yard line. Among punters who have at least 20 attempts on the season, he is tied for the sixth-fewest attempted returns (11) and has the lowest average return length in the league (3.2 yards per return). A lot of that credit goes to the rest of the Steelers’ special teams, but Waitman sets them up for success. For a team that so often has to win in the margins, Waitman has been an unsung hero.

Midseason MVP

Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images

RP: How could it be anyone other than TJ Watt? The Steelers’ offense has been up and down all season. Despite a 6-2 record, there hasn’t been a single player on offense you can hang your hat on for this award. There’s an argument for Fields, but it’s tough to give MVP to a player who’ll be sitting the second half of the season if things go to plan. Russ has given a spark to the offense, but I struggle to hand him team MVP after playing in just two games. He might get this award at the end of the season, but he simply didn’t play enough to earn it for the first half.

Therefore you have to give it to Watt. Watt once again leads the teams in sacks and is averaging a forced fumble every other game. He continues to have the knack for making plays that change the game for the Steelers. Cam Heyward deserves an honorable mention here, but Watt takes this fairly easily.

RB: I’ll keep this one short. For the reasons Ryan and I have already pointed out, it’s Watt. More often than not, he’s the reason why the Steelers win games.

But once again, I’ll point out Wilson as a dark horse if the Steelers can keep their offensive trajectory in the right direction. Watt is the better player, to be clear, but quarterback is just that important.

Best Rookie

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RP: Sometimes the best ability is availability. For that reason, I’ll go with Payton Wilson. Fellow rookies Troy Fautanu, Zach Frazier, Roman Wilson, Logan Lee, and Ryan Watts have all missed time due to injury. I give Frazier and Beanie Bishop their love elsewhere in this article — and I considered going with guard Mason McCormick — but linebacker Payton Wilson has contributed on defense and special teams since Week 1.

Raw tackle numbers don’t provide enough context for quality of play, but it is still notable that Wilson is fourth on the team with 39 tackles. He’s settled in as one of the Steelers primary backers in obvious passing downs and as the season has gone on, we’ve watched the Steelers slowly added onto his plate or responsibilities. His best games as a pro have come in the past two weeks.

RB: As good as Wilson has been, it’s hard to go with anyone other than Zach Frazier. The Steelers had a massive hole at center entering the 2024 season, and a second-round pick from West Virginia has not only filled that need, but looked like a franchise cornerstone. He’s drawn a lot of national attention as a Day 2 O-lineman, which is really saying something.

Frazier has looked pro-ready, athletic, and nasty all year, and when he returns to the Steelers’ lineup following the bye, the team’s offense should get a noticeable boost.

Midseason Predictions

Which Steelers skill player finishes with the most touchdowns?

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RB: My gut reaction was Najee Harris, but he’s never been a consistent touchdown scorer (never had more than 10 in a year) and has only two at the midpoint of this season. Instead, I’ll go with George Pickens, who has even worse career touchdown averages and just one score on the season. But his connection with Russell Wilson continues to heat up, and he had two almost-scores on Monday that would’ve put him in the skill position touchdown lead.

Pickens has built his stardom off of contested catches, making him an ideal red zone target, and he’s clearly benefited from Wilson throwing him the ball. I expect that connection to continue to improve and Pickens to lead the Steelers in touchdowns in 2024.

No skill position player has more than three touchdowns thus far (two if you don’t count Calvin Austin III’s return touchdown). It’s a wide open race, and I’m willing to bet Pickens is the one who breaks out the most.

RP: Unlike Bickley, I’m going to stick with my first instinct and go with Najee Harris. For a team allegedly designed to reduce the impact of not having an elite quarterback, the Steelers offense has been quarterback-centric when it comes to scoring. No skill player has more than two touchdowns, while Justin Fields has five rushing touchdowns and Wilson has chipped in a rushing touchdown of his own. Najee has been on a heater for the past month and the Steelers will face plenty of defenses that struggle against the run during the final two months of the season. Give me the five-time Angry Runs winner.

Which Steelers defender will lead the team in interceptions?

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RP: I’ll ride the hot hand and go with Beanie Bishop. The UDFA rookie is currently tied for the team lead and appears to be coming into his own as a pro. This might be a risky pick on my part with Cam Sutton set to be reinstated from suspension, but if Bishop keeps playing like he has, it will be hard for the Steelers to take him off the field. Sutton has familiarity with the scheme, but he was last seen in the NFL getting routinely toasted in the Lions’ secondary. A two-month layoff is unlikely to have helped him shake off any rust.

If anything, I see Sutton’s return jeopardizing snaps for Damontae Kazee and Terrell Edmunds in three safety sets. Donte Jackson has managed injuries seemingly every week and Cory Trice is only just returning from his own injury. I think Sutton will bounce around as needed and Bishop will still get plenty of opportunities to make an impact.

RB: I respect the Beanie Bishop Jr. pick, but with Cam Sutton returning, it’s highly likely the UDFA will see a decrease in snaps. As a result, I’ll go with Donte Jackson, who also has three picks on the year, currently tied for the team lead. Jackson has been a strong offseason addition and should continue to see plenty of snaps and targets as the Steelers’ CB2. He’s been a playmaker and I see that continuing in the second half of the season.

Final AFC North Standings

RP:

1. Ravens: 12-5
2. Steelers: 11-6
3. Bengals: 9-8
4. Browns: 6-11

I went through and picked each game in the remaining schedules for the AFC North. I have the Steelers going 4-2 in division play with a sweep of Cleveland. I think they’ll split their remaining NFC East matchups as well; I went with a win against Washington and a loss to Philadelphia during a stretch that sees the Steelers play four games in 20 days.

The Ravens have the Eagles and Texans remaining on their schedule, but the rest of their non-division games aren’t particularly intimidating. The Ravens defense has regressed a ton this year, but their offense remains dangerous and able to adapt to different game scripts thanks to their diverse personnel. They’re a team that might struggle when trailing, but they rarely find themselves in that position. We can criticize their playoff performances, but Baltimore is a team that handles their business in the regular season.

I struggled most with the Bengals. Their offense is so good. Their defense is so bad. You could tell me they finish anywhere from 7-10 to 11-6 and I wouldn’t bat an eye.

As for Cleveland, I’ve had them on Fraud Watch since this summer. If they had started the year with Jameis Winston over the Quarterback Who Shall Not Be Named, they might have had a shot at a wild card berth, but it’s too little too late at this point. I expect them to play the nuisance in division games — the Steelers should not take them lightly — but ultimately they have too big a hole now to dig out from.

RB:

1. Ravens: 12-5
2. Steelers: 11-6
3. Bengals: 8-9
4. Browns: 6-11

My predictions look eerily similar to Ryan’s, and that’s with me going through each team’s schedule game-by-game, not just going with a number that sounded good. Ultimately, our one difference is the Bengals, which I have losing one more game. My initial guess was 9-8 as well, but Cincinnati just keeps underperforming expectations this season so I figured I’d account for that by flipping one expected win into a loss.

On the Pittsburgh side of things, I have them going 4-2 in the division. The Ravens are one of the best teams in football. The Bengals have enough talent to put up a good fight. And the Browns are suddenly competitive with Winston at quarterback. Still, I think the Steelers split two series and then sweep one of the Bengals or Browns. But every game will be competitive.

The non-division games are Commanders, Eagles, and Chiefs. I have the Steelers going 1-2 in these matchups, as all three teams are going to be major challenges.

It’s a tough stretch of games, but Pittsburgh has been winning more than expected all year and should still come out of Weeks 10-18 as a playoff team with a winning record.

Which of these upcoming free agents will be back in 2025 because of their play?

Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images

Notable Steelers 2025 UFAs: James Daniels, Dan Moore Jr., Najee Harris, Donte Jackson, Justin Fields, Russell Wilson, Corliss Waitman, Elandon Roberts, Damontae Kazee, Jeremiah Moon

RB: I think one of Justin Fields or Russell Wilson will be back next season. It’ll be too expensive to keep both, but I have a hard time seeing Pittsburgh completely upending its quarterback room for a second straight year. If the Steelers keep winning this season, I think Wilson will be the one extended, likely to a one or two-year deal with a developmental quarterback added in the draft.

If Wilson falters in the second half of 2024, I could see the Steelers deciding to gamble with Justin Fields as next year’s starter. The 2025 quarterback class does not look great, making Fields, with a year of development under Wilson, as good an option as any.

As for the other positions, I’d like to see James Daniels, Najee Harris, and Elandon Roberts return, but I’m not confident they will. The team hasn’t shown interest in signing Daniels or Harris to extensions, and Payton Wilson’s rising playing time feels like writing on the wall for Roberts, although I bet he’ll be back if it’s cheap enough.

I’m gaining confidence that Dan Moore Jr. and Donte Jackson will return in 2025. Neither will be cheap, but if you have a serviceable left tackle and CB2, you keep them around.

Broderick Jones doesn’t look like he’ll turn it around in 2024, meaning the Steelers can let him develop while he’s still on his rookie contract while keeping Moore and Troy Fautanu as the starting tackles moving forward. As for Jackson, the Steelers can afford a higher-end cornerback duo while Joey Porter Jr. is still on his rookie contract. No need to break up what’s been working well this season — and the Steelers have plenty of cap space in 2025.

As for Waitman, Moon, Kazee, MyCole Pruitt, James Pierre, and other special teams and depth players, they’ll likely be back if the price is right. Again, the Steelers have nearly $75 million in cap space in 2025. They’ll be able to bring back a lot of free agents, even if they’ll be spending a lot more on a quarterback than in 2024.

RP: I’d like to see both of the running backs return, but I’m fully prepared to see at least one, if not both, of them go. At this point, I’m not sure how anyone could be anything other than open to all possibilities with both of these quarterbacks.

Jackson has played well this season but the Steelers and Omar Khan have operated shrewdly while managing the cap. He might deem Jackson’s age too risky of an investment, especially if his free agent market sees his value exceed the $6 million ($4.75 guaranteed) they paid him this year. With contract decisions for T.J. Watt, George Pickens, Isaac Seuamlo and DeShon Elliott in 2025 — as well as Minkah Fitzpatrick, Joey Porter Jr, Keeanu Benton and Patrick Queen in 2026 — the Steelers might decide a rookie or a more cost-effective veteran makes the most financial sense for the rest of their team building.

Dan Moore is the most fascinating name on this list. What the Steelers choose to do with Moore could be quite telling. Moore went through his struggles early in his career — you won’t mistake him for an All-Pro — but he’s taken another step forward in his consistency this season. With Broderick Jones hitting a snag in his development and rookie Troy Fautanu struggling with injuries early in his career, do the Steelers feel like they can afford to let him hit the market? And with the constant need around the league for competent tackle play, does it even matter if the Steelers would like him back? All it takes is one needy team to offer a number the Steelers are unwilling or unable to match.

Join in on Steelers R&R by sharing your takes on this week’s topics. Do you think the Steelers will make a trade before the deadline? Who won YOUR midseason awards? Let us know in the comments! Feel free to pitch future questions in the comment section or on Twitter/X: tag @_Ryland_B or @RyanParishMedia.