The Pittsburgh Steelers were rather uneventful during the NFL's trade deadline, making no moves by the 4 PM ET deadline on Tuesday. It was an unexpected decision after all the talk surrounding the team's activity during the trade deadline period and how they were looking to be buyers. Unfortunately for the Steelers fans believing the team would make moves at the deadline period, they sat idly by while the deadline came and went. However, the Steelers were not completely quiet, making two under the radar moves before the Tuesday approached.
Karl Roser / Pittsburgh Steelers
Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) during a regular season matchup between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Indianapolis Colts.
In one of those signings earlier in the week, the Steelers acquired veteran wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling to the practice squad, reuniting Valdes-Scantling with current Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers. The two spent time together playing for the Green Bay Packers. There had been talk around the league that Valdes-Scantling had come to Pittsburgh solely to reunite with Rodgers due to the time they spent together previously, which eclipsed four seasons from 2018 to 2022.
Valdes-Scantling took questions from the media on Wednesday, and was directly asked if he would end up here in Pittsburgh eventually. Valdes-Scantling's reply confirmed what many around the league had already begun to suspect.
"Yeah, man, this guy next to me got me here," Valdes-Scantling stated while looking towards Rodgers. "You've been trying to get me around since we left Green Bay."
Valdes-Scantling replying this way confirms that he eventually wanted to reunite with Rodgers, and decided to choose the Steelers over other options that he had on the table. The addition of Valdes-Scantling is the only move on the offensive side of the ball that the Steelers made throughout the trade deadline period, which gives the indication that the Steelers are comfortable with the state of their offense.
Julio Cortez / AP Photo
Former Packers wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling during a regular season matchup.
One very interesting note to keep in mind was whether or not impactful games from receivers lower on the Steelers' depth chart would influence their decisions at the deadline. Rodgers had said that he had been impressed with the performance of certain wide receivers on the team in recent weeks, specifically noting Steelers wide receiver Roman Wilson's uptick in performance.
Even though Wilson's performance declined in the week after Rodgers made the comments, the team seemingly felt comfortable with allowing him to grow in his role and felt an outside addition aside from Valdes-Scantling wasn't needed to strengthen the offense. Valdes-Scantling's comments were ones that indicated that both the Steelers and Rodgers wanted him here, and his presence not only provides a veteran voice for younger players, but much needed depth for an offense that has battled injuries at different points in the season.
Regardless of whether or not Valdes-Scantling's motivation was entirely based around playing with Rodgers again, him choosing to play in Pittsburgh gives the Steelers another option at wide receiver. This, in turn, will hopefully help to solve one of the larger issues the Steelers have had throughout the season.
Steelers' Offense Needs To Remain Healthy Through Rest Of The 2025 Season
On top of an issue the Steelers have had with remaining consistent on offense, the unit has also gone through its fair share of injuries. Multiple receivers have missed time this season, with the most notable case being receiver Calvin Austin III missing time early on. Other players on the offense have missed time as well, which stretched the depth on offense very thin, particularly at wide receiver. Having Valdes-Scantling join the Steelers will help to provide some depth at the receiver position in case something like this happens again.
Karl Roser / Pittsburgh Steelers
Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (8) during a regular season matchup between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Indianapolis Colts.
Hopefully, there won't be any more injuries on the offensive side of the ball that would force the team to call up Valdes-Scantling to the active roster.
What did you think about Valdes-Scantling's comments regarding Rodgers being the reason he signed with the Steelers? Let us know in the comments or on X at @SteelersSwamp7.
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