The Pittsburgh Steelers face a serious wide receiver quandary for the 2025 season. It didn't help that they never acquired a solid wide receiver two to put behind George Pickens in 2024. They must also decide about Pickens and his future with the team. Many people think his antics have overrun his incredible talent, and he should be traded while he has value. If they do that, they must find two top receivers to fill those spots.
This has led to the Steelers being linked to every receiver potentially available on social media this offseason. Part of the debate is whether to draft or go after a veteran to support Pickens, or even both. The top veterans being floated out there as the most likely candidates are players like Cooper Kupp, Christian Kirk, and Deebo Samuel.
Recently, Mark Kaboly from The Pat McAfee Show joined Austin Bechtold on 93.7 The Fan and asked how he thinks they will solve the receiver issue and who he sees as a viable candidate. Kaboly said that he considers Keenan Allen as an excellent dark horse candidate. Allen was with the Chicago Bears in 2024 after being traded to them for a fourth-round pick by the team that drafted him in 2013, the then-San Diego Chargers. He told Bechtold that he would give Allen a four on a scale of one to five as a player they should seriously consider.
"He's a little bit of a wild card in my book," said Kaboly. "He could be a $10-$11 million dollar one-year type of guy. He could be a guy that gets you 60-70 catches. He had what seven touchdowns last year for a god-awful offensive team? I'm always a big Keenan Allen type of guy, good possession receiver, so I'm giving him a four."
Allen was an outstanding player for the Chargers for over a decade. He was a six-time Pro Bowler and the 2017 Comeback Player of the Year. He surpassed Antonio Brown for the most receptions in the first 100 games of his career with 624. Kupp later beat Allen.
His huge cap hit made Head Coach Jim Harbaugh trade him away. The Bears believed Allen, who had 1,243 yards in 2023, could partner with Caleb Williams to boost their offense. While he did not have the impact they hoped for, Allen still had 744 yards from 70 receptions with seven touchdowns. That isn't terrible, given how bad the Bears' offense was; after all, DJ Moore only had 966 yards on 98 catches.
Kaboly does not believe the Steelers will part ways with Pickens this year. While Pickens, entering the final year of his rookie contract, will likely want an extension, Kaboly thinks they should do something similar to what they did with Najee Harris and tell him they will see how it goes. Adding Allen and his talents to the receiving room with Pickens and Calvin Austin III might give their quarterback legitimate weapons on the field.
Steelers Need Middle Of The Field Help
When Kaboly was touting Allen's virtues to Bechtold, he was asked if having him in the receiver room would help the Steelers throw across the middle of the field. Kaboly said multiple factors impact where and how they throw the ball, including the height of quarterback Russell Wilson.
Bechtold pushed back, saying they didn't throw in the middle of the field when they had Justin Fields under center. Kaboly pointed out that Head Coach Mike Tomlin has been quite open about being risk-averse and that throwing the ball across the middle is risky. It creates additional opportunities for turnovers, and the Steelers weren't loaded up with offensive talent who could consistently prevent errors.
He does believe that giving their next quarterback a better selection of weapons would help. However, he also believes Tomlin has to relinquish some control and trust his players.
