Top Pittsburgh Steelers Trade Candidates & Targets Ahead of 2024 NFL Draft

For the first time in a long time, the Pittsburgh Steelers are among the most active teams in football during the offseason.

After a string of underachieving years, the Steelers have been doing things drastically differently in an important offseason for the franchise. The team released quarterback Mitchell Trubisky, punter Pressley Harvin III, center Mason Cole, safety Keanu Neal, and right tackle Chukwuma Okorafor (among others) ahead of free agency, which merely preceded their wave of acquisitions.

The team completely overhauled its QB room in March, trading Kenny Pickett to the Philadelphia Eagles, signing Russell Wilson to a one-year deal, and trading for Justin Fields. They’ve also signed linebacker Patrick Queen and wide receiver Van Jefferson in free agency to be starters, and swapped Diontae Johnson for Donte Jackson.

General manager Omar Khan is the man responsible for that bountiful transaction log, though his work isn’t done just yet. The team still has roughly $12 million in salary cap space with which to operate, as well as seven draft picks, four of which fall in the top 100 selections in the 2024 NFL Draft.

Even after all their activity, plenty of needs remain for Pittsburgh, who must use the next few weeks to finalize a roster that is still a few pieces shy of entering the upper tiers of the AFC’s best.

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Top Pittsburgh Steelers Trade Targets

Steelers must find replacements for departed offensive starters

The Steelers have massive needs along their offensive line, which isn’t a new problem in the Steel City. However, after the release of Cole and Okorafor, the team must find a starting right tackle and center, though they may elect to go the draft route for at least one of those positions.

Georgia tackle Amarius Mims stands out as a strong candidate given his playing experience in college with Steelers’ left tackle Broderick Jones, not to mention the fact that the big man has already said that being drafted by the Steelers would “mean a lot” and “be nice”.

The team must also replace Johnson after sending him to Carolina, as Van Jefferson and Calvin Austin III currently represent the team’s WR2 and WR3 spots on the depth chart. Finding another safety, even after signing DeShon Elliot in free agency, would also be smart business given the lack of depth in the secondary.

Brandon Aiyuk, WR, San Francisco 49ers

Brandon Aiyuk has steadily improved in every season since being drafted in the first round in 2020, culminating in a Second-Team All-Pro nod last season.

Last year, Aiyuk set career highs in just about every notable category, from yards to catch percentage to average depth of target. He fully embraced the x-receiver role in Kyle Shanahan’s offense with the San Francisco 49ers, and his experience playing outside the hashes in such a run-first system means he’s the rare WR1 who’s also a good run blocker.

The reason that a 26-year-old with Aiyuk’s pedigree is on the trade block is his contract situation. He’s set to play the 2024 season on his fifth-year option, after which he’ll be an unrestricted free agent.

DeVonta Smith just earned a three-year, $75 million extension from the Philadelphia Eagles, while Calvin Ridley secured a four-year, $92 million contract in free agency.

Those two deals should be the baseline figures in extension talks with Aiyuk, who will almost certainly become the fifth wide receiver to cross the $100 million plateau. Of course, money won’t be the only cost in acquiring Aiyuk, who is the best wide receiver currently being shopped around (or, at worst, second to Tee Higgins).

There have been five wide receivers traded this offseason: Jerry Jeudy, Diontae Johnson, Rondale Moore, Keenan Allen, and Stefon Diggs. None of those receivers are exact equivalents to Aiyuk, as some are older WR1’s and others are younger, unproven receivers with potential, but the returns for them in their respective trades do shine light on the current admission price on the receiver trade market.

Only Diggs was able to bring in at least a Day Two draft pick, and even then the Buffalo Bills had to throw a couple of late-round fliers on the pile to get a second-rounder. Aiyuk will certainly be worth more given his age, but whether he can get the 49ers more than a first-round pick remains to be seen, especially given his contract situation.

Still, that’s a price the Steelers should still be willing to pay. There are no proven receiving options on the roster behind George Pickens and tight end Pat Freiermuth, and it was reported just last week that the team wanted to add another veteran receiver via trade before the draft. This is a fit that makes a ton of sense, and Khan has shown a willingness to be aggressive.

Budda Baker, S, Arizona Cardinals

Budda Baker is a six-time Pro Bowler and three-time All-Pro (including two First-Team nods), and he’s been a staple on the back-end of the Cardinals’ defense ever since he was selected in the second round of the 2017 NFL Draft.

Baker’s 2023 stats don’t tell the whole story. He was asked to do everything for the Arizona Cardinals’ leaky defense under head coach Jonathan Gannon, and he missed five games with a hamstring injury early in the season.

Baker is entering the final year of his contract and is due $14.2 million in salary with no guarantees. 2024 will be his age-28 season, though safeties tend to age better than their cornerback counterparts in the secondary.

There are currently seven safeties playing on contracts larger than $50 million, which includes Baker and his last pact with Arizona. Kyle Dugger just signed a four-year, $58 million extension with the New England Patriots, though he’s not nearly as accomplished as Baker (and that deal is actually smaller than the four-year, $59 million contract the Cardinals’ safety has been playing on).

Thus, Baker’s next contract will likely land somewhere in the four-year, $70 million range. It’s not an outrageous figure for a player who’s been a Pro Bowler in every season of his career besides one, but given that the Steelers already have perennial All-Pro Minkah Fitzpatrick under the second-largest safety contract in the NFL, they may be more willing to treat Baker like a short-term addition than other suitors.

Though the safety market has recently exploded in terms of available talent (due to the releases of Justin Simmons, Micah Hyde, and others), Baker should still command a hefty trade return as a proven star in the secondary.

The Steelers sent the Miami Dolphins a 2020 first-round pick, a 2020 fifth-round pick, and a 2021 sixth-round pick for Fitzpatrick, though he was still under his rookie contract for a number of seasons. Baker certainly wouldn’t command that much heading into the final season of his deal, and a first-round pick is probably out of the question.

Still, the Steelers could send the earliest of their third-round picks this year (No. 84), along with another third-rounder in 2025, in exchange for Baker. They’d immediately get to claim ownership of the best safety duo in football, and they wouldn’t have to give up premium draft capital in order to do it.

If Baker does find himself in the Steel City, his fit is obvious as a versatile strong safety. Though he can play the deep free safety role well, Fitzpatrick already has a claim to that job in Pittsburgh.

Baker’s ability to play in the box and cover tight ends would be valuable for a team with a lot of question marks at inside linebacker besides Patrick Queen. He and Fitzpatrick could also both play deep in Cover-4 shells, which would make the Steelers nearly impervious to offenses that rely on downfield passing.

Garrett Bolles, OT, Denver Broncos

Garrett Boles has been a staple on the Denver Broncos’ offensive line since being selected in the first-round of the 2017 NFL Draft, playing in at least 14 games in every season but one.

The 32-year-old veteran is coming off a great 2023 campaign, as he finished the season with the sixth-highest pass-blocking grade among all tackles, according to Pro Football Focus, while only allowing 32 total pressures and three sacks on 649 pass-blocking snaps. He was tied with seven other offensive tackles for the third-highest pass-block win rate, according to ESPN’s Next Gen Stats.

Bolles has never been a tremendous run-blocker on the outside, but he’s more than capable of securing the edge on wide-zone runs, and he’s always been an asset at moving defenders off their spots on inside handoffs.

Still, the Broncos are in the midst of a full-scale rebuild, and Bolles is an aging veteran on an expiring contract. It would make sense for Denver to cash in on him now, and it was reported a few months ago the team could look to release him for salary cap relief.

Bolles is in the last year of a four-year extension he signed back in 2019, with a 2024 salary cap hit of $20M, due to his $15.75M base salary, a $250,000 roster bonus, and a $4M portion of his prorated signing bonus still on the books.

A new contract for the left tackle could be in the works after a trade, though given his age, he may be purely a one-year rental for a Steelers team that is trying to get younger on the offensive line. Should they want to have an experienced veteran for the medium-term, a contract similar to the three-year, $58.3 million extension Dion Dawkins just signed with the Bills could be a good starting point in negotiations.

Bolles would certainly be the cheapest to acquire of the three players on this list, though a left tackle with his ability would still be worth something on the trade market. Morgan Moses is a 33-year-old starting right tackle who was dealt this offseason for a fourth-round pick swap and a sixth-round pick, and a similar price could be enough for Bolles.

The Steelers have a huge need at offensive tackle opposite Broderick Jones, and Bolles could be an excellent fit and mentor for the Georgia product. That both he and Jones can play both tackle spots would also give Pittsburgh some valuable versatility on the bookends of their offensive line.

Top Pittsburgh Steelers Trade Candidates

Steelers could shed some salary without blowing up the roster

The Steelers only have seven players with a cap hit larger than $10 million in 2024, all of whom are integral pieces of the roster and surefire starters when healthy. It speaks to the job that Khan has done that there isn’t a stand-out, onerous contract in the bunch.

Still, there are a couple of offensive linemen on the roster in the final year of their respective deals that don’t project to be anything more than reserve depth. They aren’t key pieces of the roster, and the team could save roughly $7.5 million by trading them away.

Dan Moore Jr., OT

Dan Moore is a divisive figure in Steelers Nation, as he’s started in 49 of a possible 51 games since being drafted as a fourth-round pick in 2021, though his performance hasn’t been particularly impressive in that time.

Moore cut way back on his penalties in 2023, getting flagged for just three holding calls in 951 offensive snaps. Still, he surrendered eight sacks in total, and his 51.7 PFF grade was rather unsightly.

Moore has played both ends of the offensive line and is currently penciled in as the team’s starting left tackle, though the Steelers want to get Broderick Jones more reps on the blindside. He’d be a valuable swing and reserve tackle if Pittsburgh traded for Bolles or drafted a starting tackle in the first-round (see: Amarius Mims).

Still, the Steelers could save roughly $3.6 million against the cap next season if they trade or release Moore, who remains far from a finished product as he heads into the final season of his rookie contract.

There are a number of teams who could be suitors for a 6’5″, 25-year-old tackle with 50+ games of starting experience (including two starts in the playoffs), though Moore may actually be better off going to a team that has a pair of veteran tackles and can afford him the opportunity to sit and learn for a year, as he was pressed into the fire immediately as a 23-year-old, mid-round rookie.

The Steelers likely wouldn’t get much back for Moore at this point, though his relatively cheap contract should make him available to every team in the league that wants him. A couple of late-round picks, including a pick swap, may be the best the Steelers can hope for.

Nate Herbig, OG

Nate Herbig was one of many interior offensive linemen signings over the past few seasons by the Steelers, and he played a valuable role last year as a reserve guard.

In 2023, Herbig started in two games, surrendering just one sack and no penalties in 156 offensive snaps. He’s started 30 games over his five-year career, and he’s still just 25 years old.

Like Moore, Herbig is a valuable player to have, as he can play all three interior offensive line spots in a pinch. However, the Steelers could save $4 million against the cap by trading him, and with Isaac Seumalo and James Daniels the surefire starters at the guard spots, Herbig would have to convert to being a full-time center to not be a superfluous piece of this roster.

The Steelers may have some hesitation about trading Herbig since his younger brother, Nick Herbig, is currently the team’s third edge rusher behind T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith. However, if they plan to upgrade the roster with another big free agent signing or via trade, they’ll need the cap space the elder Herbig’s departure would provide.

There are a lot of teams that could use a relatively cheap guard with Herbig’s starting experience, though his status as a backup and one-year rental would mean the Steelers wouldn’t get much for him on the trade market. Still, if they could pick up a late-round draft pick or two, that may be enough for them to send Herbig out with an eye on more cap flexibility.

All statistics courtesy of Pro Football Reference unless stated otherwise. All salary cap info via Spotrac.

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