The Steelers may be forced to rethink how they line up on offense, and the reason is simple: the wide receiver room is getting thinned out fast.
Michael Pittman Jr., Roman Wilson, and Ben Skowronek are all dealing with injuries, each with different return timelines. D.K. Metcalf, Kaden Wetjen, and Germie Bernard are healthy, but the situation has Pittsburgh staring at a possible shift away from the personnel groupings it has leaned on most.
Football Insights shows the Steelers spend most of their snaps in 11 personnel, the three-receiver look. That package has been their clear favorite at 54.5%.
Their next-most-used setup is 12 personnel, with two wideouts and two tight ends, and that sits at 37.7%. With so many receivers unavailable, it makes sense to expect more 12 personnel until the room gets healthier.
A move to 13 personnel could also be in play, but a true three-receiver package is harder to picture right now. That’s why Sunday in Tampa Bay becomes such an interesting test for how Pittsburgh adapts.
The same uncertainty around the offense also raises another question: who steps up at tight end if the Steelers need to lean into heavier packages? Robert Tonyan has already been mentioned as a possible answer.
Elsewhere around the league, Baker Mayfield’s situation still points to another missed week, and the NFL has reiterated its plan to play in Paris despite unrest in the city.
One more item tied to the Steelers: a Kordell Stewart documentary is on the way, and for plenty of longtime fans, that’s a welcome development.
In Other News...
Steelers Suddenly Have A Receiver Problem They Cant Ignore
A week after the win over the Colts, the Steelers are suddenly short on answers at wide receiver. Injuries have piled up across the room, leaving only three healthy receivers from the original 53-man roster heading into Week 6 and forcing the team to confront a depth problem it cannot simply brush off.
With the Buccaneers up next, the front office is at least being pushed to consider outside help, and the market offers a few familiar names who could plausibly be available. Jauan Jennings, Calvin Ridley, Jerry Jeudy and Brian Thomas all sit in the mix as speculative targets, a reminder that Pittsburgh may need to weigh both the urgency of the moment and the cost of fixing a position group that has suddenly become thin. [Read more 🡒]
Mike Tomlin Still Feels Like A Steeler In One Important Way
Mike Tomlin may no longer be pacing the Steelers sideline, but he still sounds like someone who spent nearly two decades inside the building. After ending his 19-year run as Pittsburghs head coach following the 2025 season, Tomlin has moved into an NFL analyst role, and he recently acknowledged on a podcast that his long association with the franchise still shapes the way he sees it. For a fan base used to hearing his voice around the team every week, that lingering connection is hardly a surprise.
Pittsburgh is now trying to settle in under Mike McCarthy, who has guided the club to a 3-2 start heading into Week 6. The Steelers are still sorting through the early stages of a new coaching era, and Tomlins presence in the media only adds another layer to how the team is being watched from the outside. Even in a different job, he remains tied to the franchise in a way that feels hard to shake. [Read more 🡒]
Steelers Trade Deadline Search Puts One Roster Need In The Spotlight
With the Nov. 10 trade deadline approaching, the Steelers search for help has put wide receiver front and center. Injuries have thinned the position enough to make outside additions worth exploring, and ESPN analysts have already floated a list of possible targets that includes Rashod Bateman, Quentin Johnston, Jauan Jennings and Jerry Jeudy, giving a clearer sense of the type of receiver market Pittsburgh may be forced to work through.
The fit, though, is far from simple. Some of the names come with obvious hurdles, whether it is the challenge of prying a player loose from another roster or the uncertainty around how realistic any deal actually is, and the Steelers also have to weigh how much they want to chase help at a spot that has become such an obvious need. As the deadline gets closer, Pittsburgh appears to be testing the market while knowing the most intriguing options may be the hardest ones to land. [Read more 🡒]