3 nightmare trade deadline scenarios the Steelers must avoid

Lately, when the Pittsburgh Steelers hone in on trade targets, it feels like they encounter a stream of red lights. On countless occasions, they’ve targeted a productive player and been met with congestion.

San Francisco’s Brandon Aiyuk had them on pause for weeks until the trade ultimately fell through. They saw Davante Adams twice in three weeks and couldn’t pull the trigger there. DeAndre Hopkins wound up Tennessee Titan. And if that wasn’t enough of a nightmare, Cooper Kupp returned to the fold on Thursday Night Football and was instrumental in leading the Los Angeles Rams to a win over the Minnesota Vikings—a team that was undefeated five days ago.

Omar Khan’s track record in trades is so impeccable that league insiders have issued warnings about trading with Khan Artist. However, nobody bats 1.000. There’s a reality where the front office gets desperate and reaches for a player or offers up excessive assets for a contributor who ends up being a poor fit.

These are the nightmare scenarios for the Steelers' trade deadline possibilities—and how they could backfire.

Acquiring Cooper Kupp

Cooper Kupp in Pittsburgh would have been a match made in heaven. After Thursday night, it’s less likely than ever that he gets traded. The Vikings made sure of that. The trade market had been cleared of competition. Unfortunately, on Thursday night, the Rams improved to a respectable 3-4 and returned them to contention in the NFC West. In his postgame press conference, Sean McVay shut down any possibility of Kupp being traded.

“I think a lot of the things that were out there were speculation,” McVay said. “We’re an inside-out organization. I’m really glad to have Cooper Kupp back with us and that’s what I expect to stay that way.”

Kupp would have been a more expensive trade, but the upside would have been a potentially tremendous fit. Kupp is a committed blocker, an elite route runner, and what he lacks in pure speed, he makes up for with steel trap hands. The nightmare was realized Thursday night when they escaped from a clash with Minnesota unscathed.

Trading Justin Fields

Russell Wilson may look outstanding against the Giants and have the Steelers feeling comfortable with him as their permanent starter for the rest of 2024, and possibly beyond. Where does that leave Fields? The Steelers declined the fifth year of Fields’ rookie contract for financial reasons, which leaves them in the difficult position of having to determine whether he’s a viable backup, a long-term project as an understudy to Wilson, or trade bait.

His name has been mentioned in trade rumors, but Wilson’s age and recent injury history must be considered.  If there’s a recurrence of the calf injury that kept Wilson sidelined for a month and a half, they’ll be glad they have Fields around to insert at a moment’s notice instead of Kyle Allen.

There’s also the possibility of Wilson regressing after the bye once the competition reaches another level of quality. They made a similar mistake one year ago when Joshua Dobbs briefly became a breakout name in Minnesota. Fields is better than Dobbs, but a front office that knows its history is less likely to repeat it. The recoil on trading Fields could leave the Steelers wobbliest.

Acquiring Mike Williams

Mike Williams is a day trader’s special at this stage in his career. He could be an incremental improvement over an irrelevant Van Jefferson, but is he even worth the pick it’ll take to acquire him?

In six games as one of Aaron Rodgers' primary receivers, he's reeled in 11 catches for 160 yards and has been a non-factor with zero touchdowns. So much for being a big target in the end zone. Williams’ reputation has reached the Marquez-Valdes Scantling tier, which is disappointing because he was a reliable receiver who would consistently win 50-50 battles before tearing his ACL.

Williams is advertised as a talented deep threat, but in deep routes during the final offensive snaps in consecutive losses, Williams’ inability to adjust to Rodgers; throws placed him in the doghouse. Chances are Williams has hit the downward slope that most receivers reach around the age of 30 and hoping it can be reversed is a pipe dream.