Steelers Fans Can Start Getting Excited As Roman Wilson "Is A Different Player"

The Pittsburgh Steelers have had some holes at the wide receiver position over the last several seasons. The room has been top heavy, and the depth has been questionable at best. That was the case in 2025 as DK Metcalf led the way, but he was the only consistent threat at wide receiver. This allowed opposing defenses to show him more attention and completely wipe him out of games at times. Calvin Austin III and other players tried their best, but there just was not enough talent at the position during the 2025 campaign.

That changed throughout the 2026 offseason as the Steelers made additions via trade and the 2026 NFL Draft while also seeing some in-house development. Michael Pittman Jr. was the major acquisition during the offseason as the Steelers acquired him from the Indianapolis Colts. He has made a living being an effective wide receiver over the middle of the field, and he should certainly attract some attention from defenses. 

The franchise also moved up in the second round to select Germie Bernard out of Alabama, and Roman Wilson is entering his third season. He is looking to make a name for himself in what is a crucial season for the wideout. 

Wilson had a rocky first couple of years in the league, and he was seemingly benched in the second half of the season in 2025. He has been praised by his new head coach and quarterback Aaron Rodgers, and has looked good throughout the first two days of training camp in 2026. Beat writer Ray Fittipaldo joined 93.7 The Fan on Thursday evening and spoke about the wide receiver.

"Even though he had a big drop in the two-minute drill today, Roman Wilson is a different player." Fittipaldo said. "Right now, he's running with the ones. It's Germie Bernard who is running with the twos. I guess you would expect that with a rookie, but Roman Wilson's playing well. He probably wishes he would've caught that ball from Rodgers today. But I've noticed a big difference in the way Roman Wilson looks this summer compared to last."

Wilson seemed to lose Rodgers' trust during the 2025 season, but he has potentially gained it back as has been targeted early and often in training camp. He has been the third wide receiver running with the starters, and has been showing out so far.

Wilson has shown that he can be effective in the NFL. He was probably consistently the best wide receiver in Pittsburgh during the 2025 season when it came to getting separation, which is why his benching came as a bit of a surprise. He could get open, which is something others on the depth chart struggled with. The young wide receiver is going to need to be certain that he has a strong relationship with Rodgers going into the season, or else he may risk the same thing happening again.

Wilson has looked good through two days of practice, but he is going to need to continue to stack good days and continue to improve if he wants to have a breakout season.

Steelers' Wilson Is Holding Off The Rookie In Bernard

Bernard was the team's second-round pick in 2026, and it was well known that he and Wilson would be locked in a position battle during training camp. This battle is for the third wide receiver spot, and Wilson seems to be holding off Bernard so far. 

He is going to get every chance to start over the rookie, which is probably the right way to approach the situation by the coaching staff. However, this is another reason Wilson needs to ensure his relationship with Rodgers is strong, because the offense has his replacement waiting in the wings.

What do you think about the performance from Wilson over the first two days of training camp? Let me know on X, @brogannoey!

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