A Steelers-Raiders trade that would make Brandon Aiyuk an afterthought

The Pittsburgh Steelers notoriously whiffed on bringing in star wideout, Brandon Aiyuk, before the 2024 season kicked off. Aiyuk used Pittsburgh as a leveraging chip in order to chase a bigger contract and the entire situation kept the Steelers in the dark.

But that doesn't mean Pittsburgh is done looking at pass catching options.

Jeff Howe of the New York Times recently brought some insider information from each NFL team and he had quite the interesting stance on the Las Vegas Raiders and Davante Adams.

"Barring an unexpectedly hot start, some around the league are wondering if the Raiders would move receiver Davante Adams at the trade deadline. They need to maximize their draft assets to find a franchise quarterback, and the 31-year-old Adams isn’t likely to be around when the Raiders are ready to make a playoff push."

And this idea really makes sense. Adams was brought to Vegas to play for a Super Bowl alongside his former college QB, Derek Carr. Carr is now gone and the Raiders are one of the worst teams in the league.

Holding onto Adams wouldn't help them win a Super Bowl because the team simply ins't going to be built for that until after Adams is on the decline.

A Steelers-Raiders trade to bring a HOF wideout to Pittsburgh

Trading him, now, at his highest value left, is the best idea for the Raiders. Yes, I understand Vegas fans want to see a competitive team, but if they can land a plethora of picks for the wideout, they would be foolish not to.

Pittsburgh is the perfect landing place, as their defense and coaching staff are good enough to carry them to a .500 record year after year. With a good offense, this team could compete at the top of the league.

Judging a trade for a talent like Adams is tough. Let's compare it to a few other, two to be specific, wide receiver trades from the last few years as well as one potential deal that Pittsburgh would have made.

Let's start with Aiyuk. The rumored package, with no players, was something along the lines of a second and third-round pick with other picks complementing the package. Adams is historically the better wideout, but he's also older by a few years. Given Adams' track record, they should net somewhat similar returns.

Stefon Diggs, a sixth-round pick and a fifth-round pick was moved to Houston for a second-round pick. I see this as a bit of an underpay for the Texans. Diggs and Adams are very comparable players.

In 2022, Tyreek Hill netted the Chiefs a huge five-pick package in return. Kansas City received a first-round pick, a second-round pick, two fourth-round picks and a sixth-round pick. Hill had quite a lot more value at the time than Adams does.

This may be an overpay for Pittsburgh, but it would be to add a top-10 pass catcher in the league for the next three years. This proposed deal would likely be equal in value, with the only catch being each team's willingness to spend.