More Brandon Aiyuk speculations are underway right now. The 49ers receiver getting traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers seems a very viable possibility. However, if that happens, it will be the ultimate countdown for Russell Wilson and Justin Fields, the newly acquired QBs in the Pittsburgh locker room.

Pittsburgh has a great defense lined up for the season. Thus, much like the seasons prior, the question is, how far can their offense carry them this year? The QB room was a disaster last season, but they have brought in a veteran and a young rising star to fix that issue. So, can the addition of Brandon Aiyuk fix the remaining issues for the Steelers? That’s what Chris Broussard of First Things First thinks.

“My playoff teams right now: Buffalo, the Jets the Dolphins,” said Broussard. “Houston, Kansas City, Baltimore, Pittsburgh,” he added during the discussion, making Nick Wright shocked that Broussard picked the Steelers over Joe Burrow’s Cincinnati Bengals. However, Wright’s colleague had his reasons. Notice how he mentioned the AFC North teams to make the playoffs this year. AFC North is a division as tough as they come. However, the Steelers would have a chance if they employed someone like Aiyuk.

“Because I don’t like the vibes coming out of Cincinnati. They have made the playoffs the Steelers, three of the last four years with what Wildes? Some of the worst quarterbacks in the league…. We know that their defense is going to be legit, we know they’re going to have a solid run game. Pickens, Aiyuk…What this really is, is a true and complete litmus test for whoever is the quarterback. Russell Wilson or Justin Fields. If you can’t succeed with these, then Russ truly is washed, and Justin truly is (a backup),” elaborated the analyst as his perspective of the situation.

It would be a wide receiver bonanza if Brandon Aiyuk ends up joining the Steelers and plays alongside George Pickens. Both receivers have had almost similar last season. Aiyuk put up 1,342 yards with 7 touchdowns and 75 receptions last year. Pickens on the other hand had 63 receptions, 1,140 yards, and 5 touchdowns in the last season. If he had the same amount of receptions, he might have come up with the same numbers.

Offense-wise, the only key department where the Steel City team was weak last year was the quarterback room, as Broussard said. Kenny Pickett, Mason Rudolph, and Mitch Trubisky gave an underwhelming performance for the Steelers fans to witness. Now that Russell Wilson is here, aiding him with a player like Aiyuk might give the Steelers a legit shot at playoffs.

Add to that RBs like Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren, the Steel City’s offense might just reach a new plateau. For the last three seasons, Najee Harris has been putting up 1k+ yard seasons while carrying the ball at least 255 times in a season. Safe to say that he’s a heavy utility player. Warren, though, is in his third year and had a breakout season last year. He carried the ball 149 times over 784 yards and had 4 touchdowns. But things extend beyond the Wilson, Aiyuk, and the running back group. Here’s where Arthur Smith, the new OC comes into play.

How things might be different for the Steelers with Arthur Smith as the OC

Steelers Depot’s column about Arthur Smith described his coaching style as a “downhill, physical, run-heavy attack built around play-action in the passing game.” Those are all the things the Steelers have right now. Good RBs, a great pair of receivers if Aiyuk turns up, and Justin Fields, whose athleticism shocked Mike Tomlin.

That is how Justin Fields settles well in his OC’s plans, bringing out praises from him. “This is his third system, offensively, going from his first year in Chicago to last year,” commented Smith. “But I’ve seen him. He’s really operating the offense well. There’s a lot of things that he can play to his strengths, and that’s exciting”.

Justin Fields is fast and fits well into the kind of play calling Arthur Smith adheres to, so if Russell Wilson fails, the OC can utilize the backup QB to better suit his needs. In 2022, Fields rushed for 1,143 yards and had 8 rushing touchdowns. Those are running back numbers and who knows, Smith might even use him as a de-facto running back in the future or Smith can design plays that focus on Justin Fields using his running prowess.

However, Fields and Wilson have similar problems. They fumble a lot, they have bad reads sometimes, and take sacks like candies. So, Wilson and Fields must fix that before thinking about entering the playoffs. If Aiyuk joins the Steelers, Wilson and Fields’ workload might be minimized by quite a bit. Aiyuk’s flexibility, route running, body control, and ability to beat coverages set him apart. Last year 81.3% of the passes he caught turned out to be first downs or touchdowns. The OC can use some of that confidence in the Steeler’s offense.

“Aiyuk’s route running has become more nuanced, his chaotic movements refined and focused by head coach Kyle Shanahan (a long underrated coach of the receiver position) and the 49ers’ staff. His mustang-like route running of his early career still is seemingly as wild as ever, but is now clapping to the rhythm of the offense,” is what Nate Tice had to say about Brandon Aiyuk. Don’t the Steelers need someone like him to handle business?

So, there’s no reason that Russell Wilson and Justin Fields should falter if Aiyuk were to join the Steel City team. All eyes now remain on whether the Pittsburgh team can secure Aiyuk into their side and what role will he play overall if he joins them.