Aaron Rodgers has not thrown his weight around in Pittsburgh to the degree he did in New York, but one of his former targets will join him in Pennsylvania. Marquez Valdes-Scantling‘s Steelers workout will produce a deal, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports.
This marks another nomadic year for Valdes-Scantling, who spent time with the Seahawks and 49ers. In 2024, he moved from Kansas City to Buffalo to New Orleans. This Pittsburgh trek does provide a notable reunion, as Rodgers and MVS played together from 2018-21 in Green Bay.
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The Buccaneers also showed interest in the veteran deep threat, according to veteran insider Jordan Schultz, who adds the Steelers were interested after his Seahawks release. Dropped by two teams since August, Valdes-Scantling preferred the Rodgers reunion at this stage, per Schultz.
Now 31, MVS has lost considerable value since his three-year, $30MM Chiefs pact. But the Steelers will hope some familiarity can help — even if this is probably not the end of their much-rumored wideout pursuit. They were previously linked to Jakobi Meyers and Calvin Ridley.
Valdes-Scantling is still collecting guaranteed money from the Seahawks, who gave him a one-year deal worth $4MM. Seattle ate $3MM fully guaranteed by cutting MVS out of training camp. The reunion with Klint Kubiak proved short-lived, but the receiver-needy 49ers gave him a shot. That partnership ended earlier this month with an injury settlement. The eighth-year veteran appears ready to contribute in Pittsburgh, though Fowler adds this is likely a practice squad deal to start.
After making aggressive pursuits of receivers — most notably Brandon Aiyuk — last year, the Steelers are at it again. They have not seen anyone emerge as a reliable D.K. Metcalf complementary piece. Months ago, they came up as a potential destination for ex-MVS/Rodgers Packers teammate Allen Lazard. No move has transpired, but the team has been tied to the WR market once again. With Jaylen Waddle and Chris Olave not expected to be moved, pickings appear slim for teams eyeing help here ahead of the November 4 deadline.
The Steelers, who did see Calvin Austin return to action Sunday night after a two-game absence, do not have a second wideout beyond 175 yards. Austin sits at 167, with Roman Wilson at 110. Tight ends have served as Rodgers auxiliary options. Valdes-Scantling played in five 49ers games this season, catching four passes for 40 yards. After being a Bills in-season release, MVS caught on with the Saints and impressed, posting 17 catches for 385 yards and four TDs.
This reunion comes after Rodgers influenced the Jets to sign Lazard and Randall Cobb in 2023, when they also hired ex-Packers OC Nathaniel Hackett to the same position and signed ex-Green Bay blocker Billy Turner. Rodgers later pushed for Davante Adams at the 2024 trade deadline, getting his wish. The Steelers are more or less throwing a dart by placating Rodgers via this transaction, but it would not surprise to see MVS — who was part of Rodgers’ third and fourth MVP seasons (2020-21) — see time soon due to his familiarity with Pittsburgh’s high-profile QB.
The Bucs are currently without Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and Jalen McMillan. And Emeka Egbuka recently returned from a hamstring injury. For now, they will hope Godwin — who is not on IR — can make a near-future return to complement Egbuka. The team still has Sterling Shepard as a No. 3 option in that reality, with rookie Tez Johnson being utilized amid the injuries as well.
I don’t see why Rodgers would be eager for this reunion.
He’s no upgrade from their current third-stringers
I dunno. Austin and Wilson just seem to be third options on any team. Small guys who might benefit from two better guys lining up and keeping defenses honest
But as stated below, they have so many defensive problems, what does it really matter?
He’s still fast and threatens the deep ball as a bigger sized wide receiver, opens up space for DK to work.
Not bad as far as midseason bets go, but the Steelers really should not stop there. Last night, they were down two scores, and were still forced to run their big set out there because they don’t have a dynamic (or even competent) second receiver. Wilson finally showed a little promise, but he still showed that he is long off from being a consistent starter.
The Packers game highlighted a few deficiencies in Pittsburgh (like in the front seven rush defense, for instance, or the second running back), but I’d say that the lack of receivers is the most pressing. It actually is even worse than it looked-Rodgers held the ball on a ton of plays because nobody was even close to being open, and that was in clutch time when Pittsburgh needed to score quickly. Meyers would be great, but at this point, I think that they need someone even more dynamic that can create yardage on his own…instead of relying on a 40+ year old QB to keep searching for plays and holding the ball in comeback time.
They really need someone dynamic to help compensate for lack of production in a lot of areas, and having a smart QB like Rodgers who wants to spread it out will help some of the other phases a lot better. That includes the defense, who couldn’t close out a lot of pressures on Love last night. If the offense can convert, that pass rush can stay fresh longer.
They are essentially the Bengals, with currently a better QB and lesser receivers. Same type of defense.
It doesn’t matter who they bring in offensively when you literally have aging, slow defenders
At this point, why not see if Troy, RC and Ike want to give it a shot in their old positions. They wouldn’t be much worse
And I was a Tomlin supporter for a number of years but clearly, this team could use a fresh start from the top down.
Hahahahahahaha! Lazard is next!