Steelers' Brian Thomas Jr Trade Buzz Comes With A Risky Catch Beyond The Price Tag

The Pittsburgh Steelers are 6-2, and the trade deadline is approaching with their passing game still needing help. Naturally, the idea of landing a former first-round pick sounds awfully appealing. There's a highlight reel and the promise of an immediate fix. One analyst sees a catch that goes beyond the price.

Brian Thomas Jr. has been linked to Pittsburgh ahead of the November 10 deadline. The Jacksonville Jaguars selected him in the first round in 2024, and he immediately justified the investment with 87 catches, 1,282 yards and 10 touchdowns. He followed that with 707 yards in 2025. What initially looked like an ordinary sophomore slump has carried into a third season that barely resembles his rookie breakout.

Thomas has only 10 receptions for 117 yards and two touchdowns this season. He caught a 12-yard score against the Indianapolis Colts on November 1, but drew just two targets in a 42-7 win. Four days later, Jacksonville beat the Baltimore Ravens 33-10 while Thomas played 19 offensive snaps and wasn't targeted once. Once a centerpiece, he's barely involved.

During a recent discussion, Daniel Popper questioned whether the Steelers should view Thomas' diminished role as a buying opportunity at all.

“The reason he's expendable is he's not playing well, right? Like, if he was really good, he would be getting on the field for the Jaguars. And I know he caught a touchdown the last game, but he still only got two targets. To me, the thing that's most concerning with him on film, as I mentioned earlier, is the ball tracking,” Popper said.

That assessment isn't proof Jacksonville has decided to trade Thomas. The Jaguars are 6-2 themselves, with no confirmed asking price. But Popper's concern targets something more specific than a disappointing stat sheet. He believes the receiver is having trouble judging the football in flight.

Popper described plays where Thomas jumped unnecessarily for passes and failed to finish catchable opportunities, including another throw from Trevor Lawrence down the sideline against Indianapolis. Ball tracking demands more than speed or good routes. A receiver can create separation, misread the ball's trajectory and erase the advantage before it reaches his hands. A throw that should create an explosive gain instead becomes an incompletion.

Thomas has the speed to push cornerbacks backward, but deep shots require the receiver to locate the pass, adjust without losing momentum and finish through contact. If Popper's film evaluation is accurate, Pittsburgh wouldn't merely be acquiring a player in a statistical slump. It would be betting on a fundamental receiving skill returning to its previous level.

The second concern has a familiar face. DK Metcalf already occupies the role Pittsburgh would be most tempted to give Thomas: a big, explosive outside target who can threaten a defense vertically. Metcalf has struggled with his own consistency this season, including a one-catch, four-yard afternoon against Cleveland. Trading for another boundary receiver doesn't automatically solve the route timing and contested-catch issues already limiting the passing game.

Popper sees exactly that overlap, even while acknowledging the athletic ability that once made Thomas so attractive.

“A receiver who loses the ability to really track the football is very concerning. Now, he still is an exceptional athlete, he still has the ability to stretch defenses vertically, which I think is going to be interesting to some teams, but the reason he's expendable now is because the football hasn't been that good. And I feel like the Steelers have that player in DK Metcalf,” Popper said.

Two talented outside receivers can absolutely coexist. Aaron Rodgers could benefit from having someone else demand safety help, and Thomas is still young enough to recover his earlier form. His touchdown against Indianapolis came from the slot.

But acquiring talent and assembling a functional passing attack aren't identical projects. Pittsburgh has been leaning on rookie Germie Bernard to handle assignments created by injuries to Michael Pittman Jr. and Roman Wilson. Those receiver-room responsibilities have reduced the flexibility the offense expected to have. A dependable separator who wins quickly against man coverage may address that shortage more directly than another expensive deep-ball specialist.

Pittsburgh has also leaned on two-tight-end packages to support its running game, meaning a new receiver would have to justify his snaps within an offense that doesn't always use three wideouts.

The price makes the risk harder to shrug off. A younger outside receiver could eventually become a building block, but Pittsburgh needs immediate help on money downs, where a reliable short route is often worth more than hypothetical deep-ball upside. Thomas' spectacular rookie season gives Jacksonville a reason to value his upside, while his declining production gives any buyer plenty of reasons to negotiate. Interest has been reported, but no asking price is confirmed. Paying as if Thomas is still the 2024 version would be a serious gamble.

Steelers Shouldn't Pay For A Highlight Reel From Two Years Ago

Omar Khan has every reason to explore the market before the deadline. With Rodgers in his final NFL season, the receiving group needs help. But urgency shouldn't turn a potential reclamation project into a must-have acquisition.

Head Coach Mike McCarthy needs receivers who can read coverage the same way Rodgers does, separate on time and finish catches when the margin for error shrinks. Thomas might rediscover that reliability. He hasn't shown it this season.

The Steelers should make Jacksonville name its price, then judge the player in front of them rather than the star he looked like in 2024. If the asking price reflects a gamble, the conversation is worth having. If it reflects a sure thing, Pittsburgh would be paying premium money for another unanswered question.

#SteelerNation