After a gritty Monday night win over the Miami Dolphins, the Pittsburgh Steelers are heading into Week 16 with momentum - and still clinging to the top spot in the AFC North. But make no mistake: this team is far from a finished product. The path to their current position has been anything but smooth, and the front office has been busy trying to patch holes on the fly.
Over the past six weeks, Pittsburgh has made a flurry of roster moves in an effort to stabilize an offense that’s struggled to find rhythm. Now, with veteran wideout Allen Lazard hitting the open market following his release from the New York Jets, the Steelers are being linked as a possible landing spot.
The connection makes sense on paper - Lazard has a long history with Aaron Rodgers from their time in Green Bay and New York, and Rodgers is reportedly advocating for his former teammate to get another shot. Pittsburgh, for its part, already added veterans Adam Thielen and Marquez Valdes-Scantling earlier this season in an effort to bolster the receiving corps.
So, the question becomes: should the Steelers take a swing at Lazard?
There’s a case to be made, but it’s not as straightforward as it may seem. While Lazard brings experience and familiarity with Rodgers-style offenses, the Steelers have already gone down the road of adding veteran receivers. Thielen and Valdes-Scantling were brought in to provide stability and leadership, but their presence has come at a cost - namely, fewer snaps and development opportunities for young talents like Calvin Austin III and Roman Wilson.
That’s the real tension here. Pittsburgh is walking a tightrope between trying to win now and building for the future.
General manager Omar Khan has leaned into short-term fixes to keep the playoff push alive, but there’s still no clear long-term answer at wide receiver. Lazard might help in the margins, but at this stage of the season, he’s not a game-changer.
And with the playoffs looming, chemistry and continuity matter more than ever.
It’s also worth noting that Lazard would’ve made more sense before the trade deadline. The Jets missed a chance to move him for a late-round pick, and now they’re letting him walk for nothing. That’s a tough beat for New York, but it doesn’t mean Pittsburgh has to be the team to pick up the pieces.
Rodgers’ influence in New York led to a wave of familiar faces joining the Jets - Lazard, Valdes-Scantling, Randall Cobb - and the results were mixed at best. Pittsburgh can’t afford to follow that same blueprint. The Steelers’ locker room is holding strong right now, and with the postseason in reach, they need to be careful about disrupting the balance.
Thielen and Valdes-Scantling have been serviceable, but neither has significantly moved the needle. Meanwhile, Austin and Wilson - two players with real upside - have seen their roles shrink.
That’s not a recipe for long-term success. Bringing in Lazard could further muddy the waters, adding another veteran to an already crowded room without addressing the core issue: developing young, dynamic talent at the position.
The Steelers are in a delicate spot. They’re winning games, but they’re still searching for offensive identity.
Adding another familiar face from Rodgers’ past might look like a quick fix, but it’s not the move that gets this team over the hump. If anything, it risks stalling the progress of the players who could actually be part of the long-term answer.
Pittsburgh’s focus now should be on maximizing what they have - especially in their young receivers - and resisting the urge to chase short-term familiarity over future potential. The playoffs are within reach, but the foundation for sustained success is built by trusting and developing your own.