Grading Steelers WR trade deadline scenarios: How likely are Cooper Kupp or Mike Williams rumors?

While the majority of the football world fixates on the Steelers' quarterback situation, the Pittsburgh front office is presumably working the phones and hashing out scenarios for skill-position players their starter for the remainder of 2024 will be throwing to.

Drops, fumbles, inconsistent effort, and immature behavior have given the impression that George Pickens is out of his depth as the No. 1 receiver for a perennial playoff team and their No. 2 receiver has been Najee Harris or tight end Pat Freiermuth. A year ago, Pickens thrived as an outside alongside Diontae Johnson. However, without a primary X receiver to draw focus off of him, Pickens has struggled as the featured receiver. Rookie Roman Wilson’s return to the injury report with a new hamstring injury has only exacerbated the need for an upgrade at receiver.

With time running out to improve their receiving corps, here are the options in front of Pittsburgh as the trade deadline nears.

Tee Higgins

Higgins is due to become a free agent at the end of the current league year, and there's an excellent chance, Cincinnati would facilitate the 25-year-old wideout’s exit to allocate resources to a defensive unit that’s hemorrhaged talent in recent years. They already drafted Jermaine Burton in the third round of the most recent draft. Despite sitting for their first two games, Higgins has returned to his perch as the No. 2 target for a top-five passing attack. In Pittsburgh, he'd be promoted to fields to Wilson’s number-one target in a much less explosive offense. 

Likelihood: Slim to none. Higgins’ long-term future is up in the air, but Cincy appears to be kicking that can down the road until the offseason while they go all-in on mounting a playoff run.

Cooper Kupp

The latest receiver connected to the Steelers is the Los Angeles Rams’ 2021 Offensive Player of the Year. At 31, Kupp is the same age as Davante Adams, but he feels 10 years older because of how injury-prone he has been. He tore his ACL in 2018, underwent surgery on his ankle during the 2022 season, and missed the start of 2023 with an ankle. He's beginning to sound more like an analog for Kawhi Leonard.

He's still a WR1, but his decline has been in motion since his historic 2021 campaign. But 80 percent of peak Kupp is still better than 90 percent of the league when he's healthy.

Kupp hasn't played since Week 2 when he suffered an ankle injury but has returned to individual drills. When healthy, he's one of the league's best receivers. More importantly, he's one of the league’s best dual pass-catching and blocking receivers since prime Hines Ward. The fit is perfect.

Likelihood: Speculation has run rampant that Kupp could be traded, but there's no smoke to justify the fire. There have been no indications that the Rams are downshifting from the Kupp and Stafford era. Injuries and early losses have dampened 2024, but L.A. is a few months away from re-evaluating its future. Kupp’s contract also serves as a major hindrance to any deal even if the Rams were shopping him. He has a $15 million base salary this season, meaning he's owed $1.6 million for the final 12 weeks of 2024.

Mike Williams

This is the most underwhelming option, but Williams is the most readily available option.  Williams has been the most consequential Jet this season. Not in terms of production, but about the impact yards he left out on the field had on the franchise. His miscommunication with Rodgers on final drive interceptions cost the Jets consecutive games and he was called out following their loss to the Buffalo Bills. Those errors were also the impetus for New York to fire Robert Saleh and then acquire Davante Adams.

ESPN’s NFL writer Bill Barnwell laid out the financial reasons why Williams could be on the move explaining, 

“Williams is owed only about $837,000 over the rest of the season, which makes him a reasonable trade candidate for a team hoping the veteran gets healthier and returns to his old form." Barnwell wrote. One place that has an opening is Pittsburgh, where the Steelers were reportedly close to acquiring Brandon Aiyuk before the season. Williams isn't the same caliber of player, but this would be a much cheaper acquisition."

Likelihood: This is just the type of milquetoast move the Steelers would make and call it a day. This is their sweet spot. The Steelers don’t shop for upgrades at Saks Fifth Avenue, they scour for Walmart discounts. Mike Williams is a refurbished Chargers standout. His play in New York has led to concerns over his value as a high-end No. 2 receiver, but he’s the classic Tomlin salvation project.

DeAndre Hopkins 

Hopkins has been severely underutilized since being traded to Tennessee. Unlike the menu of older, former All-Pro wideouts in the trade market, Hopkins has been active all season. Will Levis just hasn’t been able to connect with him downfield in his sweet spots. Overall, Levis isn’t cutting it and Hopkins has faded into a specter of himself.

NFL insider Tom Pelissero believes Hopkins could be had for the low price of a fourth, fifth-round pick. However, conflicting reports have noted the Titans' unwillingness to loosen their grip on Hopkins. If true, that position would demonstrate consistency from the Titans, who refused to trade Derrick Henry at the deadline a year ago, despite knowing they were out of the playoff hunt and that he was headed for free agency.

Likelihood: If Hopkins made a little noise, the Titans would likely relent, but it’s been crickets from Hopkins to date, and there doesn’t appear to be much interest from the Steelers side anyway.

Adam Thielen

Steelers 93.7 The Fan commentator Andrew Fillipponi threw out the possibility of the most lackluster trade possible, which is partially why it sounds so plausible. Lackluster trades are this organization's bread and butter. 

And yet, this rumor somehow grew enough legs for CBS Sports' Cody Benjamin to echo his opinion.

The Steelers have been sniffing around blockbuster wideouts this year, from Adams to Brandon Aiyuk, but there are an abundance of lower-tier alternatives who could be available. Thielen is one, coming off an injury at 34 for the Panthers' stuck-in-mud rebuild. He's got a much lower ceiling than a playmaker like Adams, but when healthy, he's remained one of the NFL's most surehanded possession targets, making him a logical partner for the more explosive George Pickens in Pittsburgh's otherwise old-school attack.

Considering the Steelers were jockeying for Brandon Aiyuk and Davante Adams the last few months, that is a bleak take on the Steelers front office. This is the desperation option if all other alternatives fall through. Thielen is well past his prime. This season, he's only recorded eight catches for 109 yards, and a single touchdown after being put on the injured reserve in Week 3 with a hamstring injury. Thielen will be eligible to return in Week 8, but hamstring injuries on old receivers are notoriously tricky. 

Likelihood: If this is the trade being executed by Pittsburgh, something has gone horribly wrong. Turning to a 34-year-old jalopy of a receiver who has been on IR for most of the season. The Steelers would be better off finding reps for rookie Roman Wilson than trading for a position coach.