Two consecutive seasons of missing the playoffs is quite a lot for the Pittsburgh Steelers, with the intention of upgrading their wide receivers crew with a talented draft pick, hoping that Mike Evans is still on the board when their name is up.
The Steelers do have talent for Ben Roethlisberger to throw at: Antonio Brown caught 110 passes for 1499 yards, making his second Pro Bowl in three years. Emmanuel Sanders is talented and Markus Wheaton has a lot of potential. But the Steelers need a end zone target to help Heath Miller, who is past his prime, and Roethlisberger needs a big, tall receiver to throw to when he’s in trouble.
Sanders wants more money than he deserves, and just like Mike Wallace last season, will find himself playing for someone else this year. The Steelers think that Wheaton can be just as good as Sanders, but without the demands, at least for now.
And for the help? They’re not looking at free agency, but at the draft, and especially Evans. Sammy Watkins is probably the favorite to be the first wide receiver to be taken off the board, but there’s no doubt Evans is a huge talent, and will be a first round pick. But how high?
The Steelers have the 15th pick in the draft, and Evans is projected to be picked around that number. Evans was excellent in his two years with Texas A&M, catching 151 passes for 2499 yards and 17 touchdowns, enjoying a very productive partnership with Johnny Manziel.
He’s not the perfect receiver: He’s not too fast or quick on his feet, but he makes up for that with his size (6’5, 225 lbs) and his ability to simply handle the ball above defenders instead of trying to outrun them for it. He fits what the Steelers want and need, which eventually is the most important thing.