The Pittsburgh Steelers’ need at wide receiver is often talked about, but what if 2024 draft pick Roman Wilson can develop into the perfect complementary weapon behind DK Metcalf?
That might seem farfetched, given Wilson pretty much redshirted his rookie season after suffering nagging injuries throughout, but the year two hype train has already left the station at Steelers OTAs.
“Steelers WR Roman Wilson looks like a chiseled freak this year after missing most of last year,” veteran beat reporter Mark Kaboly relayed on June 4. Adding: “He is always one of the last ones off the field after practice, so the desire is there.”
“I liked how [Wilson] looked last year when he was trying to return from injury, and he looks better now,” Kaboly continued in the same post. “Something didn’t compute with him being able to get back last year, but that seems like it is in the distance now. He needs to go into camp ON that moving train, and I think he will be just fine.”
The long-time Steelers insider finished by pondering: “Legit WR2? Possible.”
Roman Wilson Gets National Hype at Steelers OTAs
Cassidy Wood of KDKA shared a video of quarterback Mason Rudolph throwing to Wilson at Steelers OTAs on June 4, and it was quickly picked up on the national level by B/R Gridiron.
“Roman Wilson is looking QUICK 🤯🌬️,” B/R Gridiron captioned the repost.
In the video, Wilson runs a relatively simple 10-yard out route, but he does it with the crispness that separates the upper echelon route-runners from the average NFL wide receiver. And that got fans excited in the comments.
“He’s going to be the next Cooper Kupp,” one user wrote. While another compared him to ex-NFL wide receiver Santana Moss.
“My confidence in Roman Wilson has grown to an unhealthy amount,” a third fan voiced. “I am fully expecting a MASSIVE 2025 season from Rome.”
And a fourth reacted: “Was Pittsburgh right on this guy the whole time?”
Of course, not everyone was willing to buy the hype just yet.
“Roman Wilson finna be the next in the long line of ‘camp gods’ who turn into cardio kings on Sundays, 💀” one naysayer replied.
A less confident Steelers supporter also responded: “Hope he tries that in a real game.”
Steelers WR Roman Wilson Is Off to Another Strong Start Without Pads
Wilson has gained attention early on this spring, similar to last year. Steelers Now reporter Alan Saunders noted that “Roman Wilson continues to look like an improved player for 2025” on June 4.
While The Athletic’s Mike DeFabo published an entire feature on the second-year wide receiver earlier that morning.
Toward the end of that feature, DeFabo wrote: “When general manager Omar Khan traded George Pickens to the Dallas Cowboys, he reopened an enormous void on the depth chart behind DK Metcalf. If Wilson is again slow to contribute, the Steelers might continue to have questions about who catches the ball other than Metcalf. But if Wilson can get up to speed quickly and prove himself as a reliable weapon, a position group that looks thin might turn out to be deeper than expected.”
93.7 The Fan also shared a video of a slo-motion Wilson route at Steelers OTAs on June 3, too. And, of course, the aforementioned Kaboly has been high on the wideout since last week.
“As expected, the star of the week in my eyes was Roman Wilson,” Kaboly wrote on May 29. “Now, OTAs are perfectly made to show off Wilson’s talent of being a speedy, quick-twitch, excellent route-running receiver, and he didn’t disappoint. Can he be a No. 2 receiver? Who knows but what was seen by my own two eyes during the open portion of OTAs, he’s going to be a contributor this year. You can count on that.”
