Steelers Read & React: Evaluating the Mike Williams, Preston Smith trades

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Ryan Parish and Ryland Bickley tackle the week’s hottest topics. This week: Reacting to the Steelers’ Monday trades. Also, a slot corner shakeup and improving run game.

Tuesday’s trade deadline lived up to the hype for the Steelers fans. Not only did Pittsburgh make its long-awaited move for a wide receiver, but the team also unexpectedly traded for some depth on the edge.

In this week’s Read and React, we’ll be giving our takes on Monday’ trade as well as some other important Steelers topics ahead of an important second half to the 2024 season.

The Steelers traded for Jets receiver Mike Williams before the trade deadline. What’s your reaction to this move?

RB: It’s not Darius Slayton, and it cost a fifth-round pick, but ultimately it’s hard to complain much about this trade. For one, it doesn’t cost the Steelers much against the cap, and Williams should step into a WR2 role. That’s a solid deal.

Williams hasn’t impressed much this year, but he’s coming off a season-ending ACL tear in 2023 and has been part of a struggling Jets organization in 2024. With the Chargers, he was a legitimate big-play threat and contested catch target, and even in his limited catches in New York, he still flashed that ability. If Williams can stay healthy and improve a bit from his time as a Jet, this could be a great addition to the Pittsburgh offense.

And even if Williams doesn’t put up big numbers, he’s still a good scheme fit for a Steelers offense that needs another big-bodied receiver. Williams can serve as a George Pickens insurance policy of sorts if the former ever misses some time — before, Pittsburgh didn’t have anyone even close to capable of filling that role.

At the end of the day, Pittsburgh needed to add some depth at wide receiver if it was at all invested in offensive success this season. The Mike Williams trade wasn’t a slam-dunk, but it was necessary and didn’t cost the Steelers much. As long as he stays healthy, this was a good, albeit late, move from Omar Khan and the Steelers front office.

RP: I’m warming up to the fit more and more. Last week I mentioned in this column it felt like it was Mike Williams or bust for the Steelers. The team had explored the potential slot receiver market and were thwarted when Christian Kirk was lost for the season to injury. There was some interest with Adam Thielen, but I think the combination of his age and Carolina’s asking price had him lower on the priority list. They then pivoted to more traditional X receivers. I had a preference for Darius Slayton — and the Steelers were apparently interested too — but they ultimately came away with Williams for the cost of a fifth-round pick. It’s too bad the Hard Knocks cameras aren’t in place yet, I would have loved to see that discussion with the Giants’ Joe Schoen, who after his last summer on HBO is starting to look like a subpar negotiator.

But let’s actually talk about Williams. He was not the sexiest or most accomplished name on the market, but I actually think he makes a lot of sense for Pittsburgh. Listed at 6’4 and 218 pounds, Williams is another big-bodied receiver who should benefit from Russell Wilson’s playing style. Williams is not too dissimilar from Pickens. He may not have the same high gear when it comes to speed, but he’s made a career for himself winning downfield in the vertical passing game and with slants and hitch routes in the quick game.

Bickley mentioned the knee injury, but I came away impressed with how Williams looked moving on tape this year with the Jets. He tore his ACL in Week 3 last year. The recovery time for the average ACL tear is projected anywhere between six months to a year depending on the individual. Williams is currently 13 months removed from the injury and looks as fluid as he ever has running.

I don’t expect Williams to light it up, but somewhere around 30-40 receptions for 450 yards and three to six touchdowns seem in play and would go a long way in this offense.

Omar Khan didn’t just stop at receiver. He also made a surprising trade for Preston Smith to bolster the pass rush depth. What do you think of the move?

RP: Preston Smith isn’t considered one of the league’s top-tier edge rushers, but since entering the league in 2015, he’s 13th in the league in sacks (tied with Cam Heyward) and 14th in QB hits. On top of it, Smith is also solid against the run, is decent in zone pass coverage on a limited basis, and has generally been praised by every locker room he’s ever been in. It should be telling that a lot of Packers fans were tweeting out their appreciation for Smith after the news of his trade. I actually think his ability against the run is his biggest asset for the Steelers because it will allow them to spell Watt and Highsmith on early downs.

I can already hear the online discourse asking why Smith was available for so cheap if he’s so good. I believe this trade was more about the Packers and their needs for the future than about Smith’s remaining ability. With Green Bay’s new defensive coordinator switching up the team’s base fronts this season, Smith was miscast in the Packers’ new-look defense. Green Bay also has several young players — like Lukas Van Ness — who they want to get more snaps, and Smith has a contract that should be easy to get out of.

The Steelers only had to give up a 2025 seventh-round pick for Smith, and that’s primarily because this should only be a short-term pairing. Smith has no guaranteed money left on his deal, despite two years remaining on his contract. His $13.4 million dollar cap hit in 2025 would be the sixth highest on the Steelers. It’s hard to envision that being tenable for Pittsburgh to spend on a non-starter. The Steelers will likely cut him post-June 1 so they can spread the $9.8 million dead cap between 2025 and 2026.

Smith might not be in Pittsburgh’s long-term plans, but flipping a seventh for a quality third edge is always good business.

RB: Giving up just a seventh-round pick for a veteran edge defender who’s managed eight-plus sack seasons for the last three years? Take a bow, Omar Khan.

I’m not sure if many saw this coming — generally a team with T.J. Watt, Alex Highsmith, and Nick Herbig wouldn’t be looking to trade for another outside linebacker. But the position group is just that vital to the success of the Pittsburgh defense. Smith is an experienced, productive player who has the size to fill the DeMarvin Leal role for the Steelers on run downs.

While Smith only has 2.5 sacks so far this season, he’s still started every game for the Packers and has been incredibly healthy his entire career. He’ll be a noticeable improvement over Jeremiah Moon, and gives the Steelers two very solid, but different, depth outside linebackers between himself and Herbig. Smith’s contract is a little pricey for a rotational player, but the Steelers have the cap space this season and an easy out the next. The trade is a great boost for a defense that’s been good, but could be better, so far this season.

Cam Sutton has been reinstated. What role will he play in the Steelers’ defense moving forward?

RB: Sutton will take over some of Beanie Bishop Jr.’s snaps in the slot moving forward, but I don’t see the rookie immediately disappearing from the Steelers gameplan. For one, Bishop is currently playing the best he has all season, with three interceptions in the last two games. And although the Steelers might just be playing coy, they don’t seem to be 100% sure that Sutton will be ready for a full workload right away.

On top of that, Sutton is a versatile player who spent a lot of time at safety this preseason, and he played on the boundary during his time in Detroit. Bishop is more slot-specific, and the Steelers’ secondary, while talented, isn’t the deepest. I see the Steelers moving Sutton around a lot this year.

It might not be right away, but I fully expect Sutton to take over as the starting slot cornerback this season. However, Bishop will still be getting a respectable number of snaps each week. The Steelers aren’t afraid to rotate their defensive backs.

RP: I think Mike Tomlin has shown he’s open to fluid situations this year. He finds himself in a good position. He threw his rookie UDFA into the lake and told him to learn how to swim. Beanie Bishop hasn’t been perfect, but he isn’t drowning. He’s strung some good games together over the past month on his way to being named the NFL’s Defensive Rookie of the Month. For that reason, I think it’s a bit presumptuous to pencil Sutton in as the starting nickel. As I said last week, at least initially, I believe Sutton will eat into the snaps of players like Terrell Edmunds, James Pierre, and Damontae Kazee more than Bishop. If Sutton plays well and Bishop struggles, Tomlin and defensive coordinator Teryl Austin can adjust accordingly.

Najee Harris has recorded three straight 100-plus yard games. Is the Steelers’ improved rushing attack here to stay?

RP: I’m pleased with the progress, but I’ll pump the brakes a little bit on this one. The Steelers just played the Giants (142.6 YPG, 28th), Jets (132.6, 21st) and the Raiders (129.9, 17th), all bottom-half teams against the run this year. They should be in for a good game this week against the Commanders (143.0, 29th) and they do get the Bengals (130.4, 18th) twice. But they’ll also face top-10 run defenses in the Ravens (75.7, 1st), the Chiefs (83.9, 3rd) and the Eagles (101.1, 5th).

I think the run game is headed in the right direction, but I’ll believe it’s a true strength when they run on the Ravens.

RB: The Steelers run game has been on a heater lately, and in theory, it should just keep getting better. Najee Harris always improves as the season goes on. Mason McCormick is continuing to develop at guard. More importantly, stud center Zach Frazier is poised to return for Week 10, and Cordarrelle Patterson (did you know he’s averaging 5.8 yards per carry this year?) should be back soon as well.

As Ryan mentioned, the Steelers do have three top-five run defenses still on the schedule in the Ravens (twice), Chiefs, and Eagles, which will likely put a damper on Pittsburgh’s rising rushing yards per game. But although the productivity might not always be there, I do believe there are meaningful improvements being made that will last.

Rewatch the game against the Giants. Najee Harris is running with far more confidence right now than he was at the beginning of the year. Jaylen Warren has his old burst back. And the Steelers’ O-line (plus star blocking tight end Darnell Washington) are starting to consistently create lanes.

Add in an improving passing offense (and the Williams acquisition should continue that trajectory), and the Steelers’ rushing attack should face even less heavy boxes. I’m optimistic the run game will continue to perform well this season, but as Ryan alluded to, don’t get your hopes up too high with Baltimore still on the schedule.

Our Week 10 preview will be published later this week. Per popular demand, we’ll experiment with publishing it as a separate article.

Join in on Steelers R&R by sharing your takes on this week’s topics. Will Cam Sutton see many snaps on Sunday? Will the Steelers’ rushing offense continue to excel? Let us know in the comments! Feel free to pitch future questions in the comment section or on Twitter/X: tag @_Ryland_B or @RyanParishMedia.