DK Metcalf didn’t exactly hide how he feels about Michael Pittman Jr. in Pittsburgh.
The Steelers’ new wideout had plenty of praise for the former Colts receiver, calling attention to Pittman’s size, production and versatility as Pittsburgh tries to build something more dangerous on offense. And if Colts fans needed any reminder of what Pittman has meant over the years, Metcalf delivered it for them.
Pittman’s move to the Steelers came after six seasons in Indianapolis, where he served as the team’s top pass-catcher but never quite grew into the star the Colts envisioned when they drafted him. This offseason, Indianapolis chose a different direction, leaning on Alec Pierce as its primary target with Josh Downs right behind him and moving on from Pittman.
Now Pittman is in a new uniform, sharing a receiver room with Metcalf, another high-profile wideout who found himself on a new team after a surprising exit from his former one. The two have already crossed paths in a meaningful way this season, with Metcalf backing Pittman as he dealt with an injury.
Pittman made a solid first impression in Pittsburgh, catching three passes for 58 yards in his debut, including a 28-yard reception from Aaron Rodgers. He even outproduced Metcalf in that game, with Metcalf finishing with 40 yards.
But Week 2 brought a different update: reports from Pittsburgh said Pittman would miss the Steelers’ game against the New England Patriots.
Even with the injury situation hanging over the start of his Steelers tenure, Pittman has already drawn strong support from one of his new teammates. Metcalf was effusive when talking about him.
"First off, he's a great dude. Spent a good bit of time with him this offseason," Metcalf recently said of Pittman."And then having somebody with that much experience, that type of body, pause, that type of experience in the league who's been successful in another franchise come over here, I think it's going to do wonders for our offense.
"He's a great player, number one. So, I mean, I leave the rest up to the coaches and how they scheme up everything else," Metcalf continued.
"But, you know, having somebody with that type of catch radius, he catches everything. He can run every route in the route tree, so we're past that.
He's a diamond in the rough, as you will. So, having somebody opposite of me who can do that, and plus, in the slot.
I think our going to do pretty well."
Metcalf’s point is pretty simple: Pittman gives Pittsburgh another proven target who brings experience and reliability. Across six NFL seasons, Pittman has 488 catches for 5,312 yards and 25 touchdowns.
On paper, the fit makes sense. Metcalf and Pittman look like a legitimate one-two punch at receiver.
But the bigger issue in Pittsburgh isn’t the wideouts. It’s Rodgers.
The real question is what he has left and whether he can still bring out the best in both of them.
There’s also a fair case that Metcalf might have looked better with a younger, more effective quarterback last season. The same debate hangs over this year too. Whether Rodgers can get the most out of this receiver duo is still the thing to watch.
For now, though, Pittman has landed in a place where a teammate is openly sold on him. That kind of backing matters, and for the Steelers, it’s a clear sign the locker room believes he can help.
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