Last year, many of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ offensive problems came from the pass-catching group. At receiver, nobody was able to make a consistent impact to help DK Metcalf out. And at tight end, Jonnu Smith took targets away from both Pat Freiermuth and Darnell Washington, with Freiermuth especially struggling to carve out a role. Overall, some saw the Steelers’ pass-catching corps as one of the least talented in the NFL in 2025.
That’s something Pittsburgh sought to change this offseason. Michael Pittman Jr. was added to give stability at receiver, and second-round rookie Germie Bernard holds plenty of potential for the future. At tight end, Pittsburgh could see some addition by subtraction as Smith’s exit paves the way for Freiermuth and Washington.
However, it’s not enough for NFL analyst Warren Sharp. Ranking teams by their wide receiver and tight end rooms in a tweet posted Monday, Sharp had the Steelers in the ‘D’ tier, the second lowest. They were only above Miami and shared their tier with Kansas City, Baltimore, both New York teams, and Indianapolis.
Some of the teams Sharp listed ahead of the Steelers sure are interesting. Las Vegas does have Brock Bowers, but has little proven talent at receiver. The same could be said about Cleveland, who have two recent draft picks in Denzel Boston and KC Concepcion. Each might develop into a high-quality receiver, but neither has taken an NFL snap yet. Carolina, Tennessee and Washington coming in ahead of the Steelers might raise some eyebrows as well.
Of course, there is a world where Sharp is right. With Bernard and Roman Wilson still young, there’s a chance neither is able to earn Aaron Rodgers’ trust this year. That would make things harder for Metcalf and Pittman, and if the latter can’t produce as consistently as he did in Indianapolis, that would really strain the offense. Sharp’s analysis also assumes neither Freiermuth nor Washington takes off in 2026.
But there’s also reason to believe the group will be better than Sharp predicts. Pittman has produced with a random assortment of quarterbacks in Indianapolis, so it’s hard to believe he wouldn’t do the same with one of the most experienced quarterbacks the game has seen. That alone would make things easier on Metcalf. Bernard fits those two very well, and Wilson has quickly impressed the coaching staff. Finally, both Washington and Freiermuth produced with Rodgers last year when given the chance.
This isn’t to say the Steelers have the best pass-catching group in the NFL. There certainly is a chance it doesn’t live up to the hype. But despite a decent mix of youth and proven talent, Sharp doesn’t have high hopes for the Steelers in 2026.