Steelers Taking A Different Approach Before 2026 NFL Draft To Avoid Selecting Another George Pickens

The Pittsburgh Steelers are preparing to attack free agency and the 2026 NFL Draft in order to improve the roster for the 2026 season. The franchise needs to improve on the offensive side of the ball while patching up some holes on defense, but adding some offensive weaponry seems to be the focus of the organization heading into the offseason. New head coach Mike McCarthy has an offensive philosophy when it comes to coaching, and he needs some more talent at wide receiver in order to open up the offense. Wide receiver is a position to watch in the first round, and that was made evident from the way the franchise met with the top prospects at the position during the NFL's 2026 Scouting Combine.

Pittsburgh met with most of the high-end wide receiver prospects during the Combine while also doing its homework on the other players at the position. The franchise seems to be taking a very thorough approach to the position group, and it is expected that the organization will use two of its top picks on the wide receiver position. Steelers legend James Harrison spoke about this on one of the recent episodes of his podcast Deebo & Joe, and he shared that the franchise is probably trying to avoid making the same mistakes it has made in recent years.

"How many times has an offensive, defensive lineman, caused division in the locker room?" Harrison asked. "How many times has a corner caused division in the locker room? How many times has anybody that wasn't a wide receiver or a quarterback caused division in the locker room? It's not that many in the NFL. We've had five receivers now that we've drafted in that time period at the position, none of them received long-term deals with the Steelers. Most of it was due to maturity issues. So what they are doing is digging into the person that is the receiver that they want. So they know, this is a person that fits the Steelers Way."

The Steelers have a history of drafting wide receivers that other organizations around the league might be put off by. The most recent example is George Pickens. Pittsburgh drafted him in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft, when he was certainly a first-round talent. He had some injury concerns, but they were paired with character concerns, which is ultimately what made him fall in the selection process.

Pickens certainly caused some division in the locker room at times during his tenure in Pittsburgh, and issues like that are a part of what caused the organization to trade him during the 2025 offseason. He had a career year with the Dallas Cowboys, but it was still reported that he would show up late to team events, which shows he hasn't grown that much in his character.

Other examples of wide receivers that fit this mold that were drafted by Pittsburgh are Diontae Johnson, Chase Claypool, and JuJu Smith-Schuster. All three of those players showed signs of immaturity at some point, and Harrison believes that is what the organization is trying to avoid this time around. 

Steelers Need To Find Level-Headed Talent At Wide Receiver

The Steelers will likely be drafting two wide receivers in the 2026 NFL Draft, and the organization needs to make sure these players can contribute almost right away while being a good addition to the locker room. Pittsburgh began that process by speaking with these prospects at the Combine, and that process will continue at various schools' Pro Days and throughout the process of handing out formal visits. Fans should expect a lot of formal visits ahead of the 2026 NFL Draft to include the wide receiver position, as that seems to be the franchise's main focus.

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