After the Pittsburgh Steelers 2017 season ended with a home loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars in the Divisional Round of the playoffs, it would have been easy to speculate at that time that wide receiver Darrius Heyward-Bey would be one of several players who wouldn’t ultimately be on the 2018 53-man roster. However, now that the Steelers have jettisoned wide receiver Martavis Bryant to the Oakland Raiders via draft day trade, Heyward-Bey still has a legitimate shot at making the Steelers 53-man roster a fifth consecutive year.
While the Steelers did ultimately select former Oklahoma State wide receiver James Washington in the second-round of the 2018 NFL Draft in hopes that he’ll take over for Bryant as the team’s deep threat moving forward, he’s sure to need a little bit of development and guidance during his rookie season.