NFL Rumors: Steelers to host key free agent who could make offense a lot better

The Pittsburgh Steelers have completely revamped their offense, hiring Arthur Smith to serve as their offensive coordinator and rebuilding their quarterback room. Russell Wilson (and potentially Justin Fields) will hope to lead a competent offense for the first time in years.

Another move that the Steelers made to give their offense a new look was trading longtime Pittsburgh receiver Diontae Johnson away. Sending Johnson to the Panthers made some sense as the Steelers acquired a cornerback, Donte Johnson, to fill another need, and moved up in the draft as well for a player who is set to hit free agency at season's end.

While the deal made sense for Pittsburgh, it left them with a gaping hole in their wide receiver room. George Pickens is still there, but their WR2 if the season began today would probably be Van Jefferson. That is obviously not good enough. With that in mind, the Steelers have surveyed the wide receiver pool of free agents and have identified one in particular who should help the team a ton if they manage to sign him.

Signing Mike Williams could be a game-changer for the Steelers offense if they can pull it off

ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that the Steelers are set to host free agent wide receiver Mike Williams sometime this week. They're one of at least four interested teams as the New York Jets, Carolina Panthers, and Los Angeles Chargers were mentioned by Schefter.

Williams was one of many cap casualties for the Chargers. Fellow wideout Keenan Allen was traded to the Bears, but Williams was released, giving him the chance to choose where he signs. Steelers fans can only hope it's Pittsburgh.

When healthy, the 29-year-old can be a game-changer on offense. He has a pair of 1,000-yard seasons in his seven-year career and even led the league with 20.4 yards per reception in 2019. He's averaged 15.6 yards per reception in his career, proving to be a very strong deep threat.

The key words in the paragraph above are when healthy. Williams, while ultra-talented, has had a very hard time staying healthy in his NFL career. He was limited to just three games this past season after tearing his ACL. He did look good in those three games, averaging 83 yards per contest, but the Steelers would need him to be on the field for their offense to be at the top of its game.

A wide receiver duo consisting of Williams and Pickens would be dangerous, and could finally help get this Steelers passing attack back on track after years of subpar play. Whether Pittsburgh can land him over the Jets or a team like the Panthers where he'd get more targets remains to be seen, but the fact that there appears to be mutual interest with Williams and the Steelers is certainly a good sign.