The Steelers finally have the kind of opening that can change a deadline conversation.
At 6-2 after a convincing Week 8 win over the Cleveland Browns, Pittsburgh sits on top of the AFC North with real playoff hopes. But the roster hole is impossible to ignore: this team needs a wide receiver. And after another Chargers loss, the Los Angeles side of the equation looks a lot more interesting.
Jim Harbaugh’s team is now dead last in the NFL at 0-7 as the season moves toward its midpoint. With things unraveling that badly, there’s no reason to think the Chargers should be holding tight to everyone on the roster. Like the Indianapolis Colts, most players should be available if the right deal comes along.
That includes Ladd McConkey.
For Pittsburgh, the fit is obvious. The Steelers have been searching for a receiver who can run the full route tree and separate cleanly out of breaks.
McConkey does exactly that. He’d give Aaron Rodgers the kind of target who can get open before the ball even comes out, and he would pair well with both DK Metcalf and Germie Bernard.
There’s also a longer-term angle here. McConkey still has a year and a half left on his rookie deal, so this wouldn’t just be a half-season rental for 2026. It could be a move for now and later, with an extension next offseason very much in play depending on how things go.
Of course, the injury history is part of the equation. McConkey hasn’t suffered a devastating season-ending injury, but he has been banged up often enough to cut into his snaps. Soft-tissue issues have been part of that, and he’s recently been dealing with broken ribs.
That could work in Pittsburgh’s favor when it comes time to talk price.
McConkey is still one of the Chargers’ top five players, and the 34th overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft won’t come cheap. A healthy version of him might even command a first-round pick.
We recently saw what his 2024 draftmate, Marvin Harrison Jr., brought back: a second-rounder plus. That’s the kind of starting point Omar Khan should be looking at.
And the Steelers have the draft capital to make it happen. With first-, second-, and two third-round picks in 2027, they can put together a serious offer without emptying the cupboard.
If the Chargers are serious about selling, a second-round pick and a fourth-round pick could be enough to get them thinking. For a talented receiver with injury concerns and a team that may be ready to clean house, that kind of package makes sense.
Pittsburgh has a chance to get aggressive, and McConkey looks like the cleanest fit on the board. It’s time for Khan to make the call.
In Other News...
George Pickens Is Reminding Steelers Fans Why Pittsburgh Moved On
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But the old questions have followed him, too, and they are the same ones Pittsburgh had to weigh before moving on. Pickens has continued to draw attention for behavior that can become just as hard to manage as any coverage scheme, which is why the Steelers were willing to make the deal in the first place and why his next chapter is still being defined by more than just catches. [Read more 🡒]
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On Sunday, one of those moments came when Metcalf dropped a wide-open pass that Clevelands Denzel Ward turned into an interception, a play that summed up the volatility of his year so far. Even with the miscues piling up, the Steelers are still treating this as a fixable stretch rather than a reason to pull back on him, which makes the next few weeks especially important for a receiver still trying to settle into his role. [Read more 🡒]
Steelers Fans Are Asking If This 6-2 Start Feels Different
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Injuries and a demanding second half will help answer that soon enough, and the next stretch will tell a lot about how real this run is. What has changed around the team is the sense that the current setup may be better equipped to handle the pressure than some recent Steelers groups that flashed early and faded late, which is why this bye week feels less like a pause and more like a checkpoint. [Read more 🡒]