The Pittsburgh Steelers seem to want a lot of competition at wide receiver during training camp. Pittsburgh has inked several wide receivers this offseason to compete for places on the depth chart behind George Pickens and Roman Wilson.
There are more than enough bodies to fill out the position group, so the training camp battle will be fierce. The Steelers recently made a move that will add one more player to this crowded position battle.
The Pittsburgh Steelers have signed former Jacksonville Jaguars receiver Jaray Jenkins. To make room on the roster, Pittsburgh waived cornerback Luq Barcoo.
Jenkins was an undrafted free agent following the 2023 NFL Draft. The Jaguars signed Jenkins, but they waived him from their roster at the start of training camp. Now the Steelers are giving him another shot.
In the predraft process he measured in at 6-foot-1 204 pounds and ran a 4.60-second 40-yard dash.
Jenkins played with Joe Burrow during LSU's national-championship run in 2019. He hauled in 89 catches for 1,370 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns during his four years at LSU.
Jenkins joins a hugely crowded position group and will realistically battle for a practice-squad spot.
The Steelers currently have a slew of players competing at wide receiver behind their entrenched starters. Jenkins' competition includes Calvin Austin III, Scotty Miller, Quez Watkins, Denzel Mims, Dez Fitzpatrick, Marquez Callaway and Duece Watts.
There may be even fewer roster spots available than normal at wide receiver, considering that Cordarrelle Patterson will be on the roster as a return specialist. He is projected to settle in at best as RB3, so he could eat into the receivers' target share in some packages.
Could the Steelers use Justin Fields in a Derrick Henry role near the goal line?
Steelers fans are also excited to see what will happen at quarterback, where Russell Wilson and Justin Fields will compete for a starting job.
Wilson is the presumed frontrunner to win the starting job for Week 1, which has caused many to speculate how the Steelers may deploy Fields if not at QB. Earlier this offseason, Jaylen Warren comments suggested that Pittsburgh may let Justin Fields return kicks — though this idea was quickly countered by the team.
However, one ESPN analyst recently suggested that Fields could be used in goal-line situations.
“Arthur Smith, the new OC, used Derrick Henry as a quarterback/passer when he was in Tennessee calling plays, so why couldn't you use a guy like Fields with his big-time ability?” ESPN's Jeremy Fowler said on NFL Live.
This is an intriguing concept. Fields does possess the dual-threat ability to either run or pass the ball, but he does not possess the same battering-ram style that Henry does.
“Russell Wilson's undisputably the QB number one,” Fowler said. “He's not splitting reps. However, I've talked to multiple teams who expect the Steelers to utilize Justin Fields as a runner and passer in the goal line, think 8 yards and in.”
While the Steelers may not use him like Henry, it would be foolish to waste the talents of a young, dynamic athlete like Fields.
We can't wait to see how the Steelers use Justin Fields in 2024.
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