We all wondered what Omar Khan’s first trade deadline would look like. It appeared as if yesterday would go by with the Steelers doing nothing as the deadline neared. But with time ticking away Khan pulled off not one, but two trades. Let’s take a detailed look at both trades to see how the Steelers did:
Chase Claypool to Chicago:
Apparently Omar Khan paid very close attention to his predecessor Kevin Colbert when it comes to dealing wide receivers. In fact, he actually one-upped his former boss in this trade. The Steelers received a second round pick form the Chicago Bears in return for Claypool. The important thing here is Pittsburgh got the Bears original pick, not the one thay had just acquired from the Ravens for Roquan Smith. That’s the difference of 13 spots as we stand today, and could improve as the season goes on.
As far as the Chase Claypool loss is concerned, there shouldn’t be much of a setback for the Steelers offense. His absence will open up opportunities for players like George Pickens and Steven Sims to get much needed targets going forward. Pickens in particular will benefit from being more of a focal point of the offense.
Omar Khan will most likely turn a decent profit in this trade in terms of draft capital. Claypool was the 49th overall pick in the 2020 draft. This pick the team obtained could easily end up in the low 40s with the Bears going through a fire sale on an already bad roster. Apparently the Green Bay Packers had also offered a second round pick creating somewhat of a bidding war. Khan took full advantage of this, and gets an A+ for maximizing the value he got in return. We thought a third round pick was the ceiling in terms of trade value: NFL trade deadline: Three players that could get traded if the Steelers season continues to falter
William Jackson III to the Steelers:
The Pittsburgh Steelers finally got their man. Six years after the Cincinnati Bengals stole him with the pick just before the Steelers, Omar Khan has finally brought him home. The Steelers gave up next to nothing to acquire Jackson. Washington gets a 2025 sixth round pick, while Pittsburgh gets an additional 7th round pick back in the deal. So the teams essentially swapped late round picks in 2025 to get this deal done.
The only downside to this deal is the nine million due to Jackson in 2023. That’s a hefty price for a thirty year old corner who has been struggling mightily as of late. If he can return to anywhere near his early career form however, this may look like a bargain. Even with his latest down turn, William Jackson is now easily the best outside corner on this roster. The Akhello Witherspoon benching, combined with the Levi Wallace injury leaves the Steelers extremely short at the position.
Overall this is a very low risk, and a moderately high reward trade for the Steelers. At the very least the team should get a more settled corner position for the rest of 2022. They gave up nothing in terms of assets for a flyer on what was at one time a pretty decent corner. This is a solid B for this trade, and an A- overall for Omar Khan’s first trade deadline performance.