PITTSBURGH -- The Steelers plan to sign wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling, sources told ESPN's Jeremy Fowler on Monday.
The move reunites Valdes-Scantling with quarterback Aaron Rodgers, whom he played with for four seasons in Green Bay from 2018-2021. The wide receiver will most likely start out on the Steelers' practice squad, sources told Fowler, but the team decided to bring him into the fold after a successful workout on Monday.
The move adds another depth piece to a motley crew of Steelers wide receivers. DK Metcalf leads the Steelers with 461 receiving yards, 17.1 yards per reception and five receiving touchdowns, but the group behind him hasn't been consistently productive. Fourth-year receiver Calvin Austin, who missed the last two games with a shoulder injury, has the next most receiving yards among receivers with 167 and two touchdowns.
Roman Wilson, who missed most of his rookie season with injuries, is next with 110 receiving yards after leading the team with 74 receiving yards on four catches and a touchdown in the loss to the Packers. The Steelers, instead, have largely relied on their tight ends to replace some of the production in the passing game, and offensive coordinator Arthur Smith has also incorporated running backs Jaylen Warren and Kenneth Gainwell as pass catchers.
The addition comes a week away from the trade deadline where the Steelers could be in the market to add more offensive playmakers.
Valdes-Scantling was most recently rostered by the San Francisco 49ers but was placed on injured reserve by the team on October 17 after missing practice with a calf injury. He was then released a day later with an injury settlement. He initially signed to the team's practice squad on August 28 and was promoted to the active roster on September 3. He appeared in five games and caught four passes on eight targets for 40 yards.
Valdes-Scanting had 13 touchdowns in Green Bay led the league in 2020 with 20.9 yards per reception. That season also marked a career-high six touchdown receptions for the 2018 fifth-round pick. Following Green Bay, Valdes-Scantling spent two seasons in Kansas City, eight games with the New Orleans Saints and six games with the Buffalo Bills.
He initially signed a one-year, $4 million contract -- with $3 million guaranteed -- with the Seahawks in free agency to be their third receiver and replace some of the firepower lost when the team dealt DK Metcalf to the Steelers, but others outperformed Valdes-Scantling in the training camp leading to his release.
On the other side of the ball, the Steelers are bracing for safety DeShon Elliott to miss the rest of the season, sources told Fowler. His ACL is intact and he's working through the nature of the leg injury, so Pittsburgh will hold out hope, but a return is not considered likely at this point.
