The Steelers acquired wide receiver Mike Williams from the Jets on Tuesday via a trade prior to the NFL's deadline for such deals.
A 6-foot-4, 218-pound, eight-year veteran, Williams has been a receiver capable of stretching the field throughout his career. He's averaged 15.5 yards per reception on his 309 career catches, including an NFL-best 20.4 yards per catch with the Chargers in 2019.
This season with the Jets, his first in New York, Williams has caught 12 passes for 166 yards but has failed to score.
The seventh-overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft out of Clemson by the Chargers, Williams has two 1,000-yard seasons in his career, most recently in 2021 when he also had a career-best 76 receptions.
He had 895 yards on 63 receptions in 13 games the following season before a knee injury sidelined the 30-year-old for all but three games in 2023.
The Steelers reportedly showed some interest in Williams as a free agent this offseason following his release by Los Angeles in a cost-cutting measure. But Williams visited the Jets before a scheduled visit to Pittsburgh, and he signed with New York.
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With the Steelers, Williams gives the team another outside-the-numbers receiver to pair with budding star George Pickens who can challenge defenses down the field.
Though he was slowed early in this season while coming back from the knee injury, he's now more than a full year removed from the issue and should be ready to ramp himself back up into a bigger role, something that wasn't going to happen in New York, which acquired Devante Adams from the Raiders three weeks ago.
Williams had just one reception in the first two weeks, but caught nine passes for 135 yards in three games before the Jets acquired Adams and he became New York's No. 3 receiver.
Williams' acquisition means that veteran Van Jefferson, who has been serving as an outside receiver opposite Pickens, can see more time in the slot. Prior to joining the Steelers, Jefferson saw equal time throughout his career in the slot and outside.
