The Pittsburgh Steelers recently made a trade to bring in former Seattle Seahawks star wide receiver DK Metcalf. They then extended Metcalf on a four-year 132 million dollar deal. This was great for Pittsburgh to bring in a true number-one receiver but it also left questions about the future of another wide receiver.

George Pickens, who was Pittsburgh’s best receiver for the past few seasons, is in a contract year and is going to want to get paid. However, with Metcalf’s new deal, it is uncertain if the Steelers will want to allocate all that money to one position.

This could mean that the Steelers decide to try to get off of Pickens to get some type of return before they lose him for nothing. We have seen this type of problem recently with the Cincinnati Bengals, and it took Tee Higgins two franchise tags before he got a long-term deal.

Pittsburgh has also been mocked to take another receiver with their first or second-round pick in most mock drafts, so if they do add some young talent to their wide receiver room then they may see Pickens as a piece they need to move before they have to pay him.

This is where the New England Patriots can come in and get Drake Maye a 6’3 200 200-pound 24-year-old wide receiver that has only scratched the surface of his potential. The Patriots would love to get a proven young receiver through the trade market rather than drafting one due to their poor history of drafting and developing receivers.

Pickens dealt with a hamstring injury that kept him out a few weeks this past season, but in the 14 weeks that he played, he was able to put up 59 catches for 900 yards and three touchdowns. This means that if he plays a few more games he is easily a 1,000-yard receiver and would have had closer to 75 catches which is an elite mark.

Pickens is a very talented receiver who has great hands, he has an insane catch radius, crazy body control, and fantastic ball adjustment skills which would allow him to make at least one top-ten catch every year. He is also a willing blocker, extremely clutch, and a deep ball threat who can make big plays and change the course of a game.

In return for Drake Maye’s new top target, the Steelers could be interested in quite a few players. Quarterback Joe Milton would be intriguing due to the Steeler’s current quarterback dilemma, running back Antonio Gipson would be another player they may be interested in due to losing Najee Harris, and Kendrick Bourne could be a cheaper veteran receiver that they could want in return as well.

The Patriots have already signed Josh Dobbs so trading Milton would not be an issue, and they could easily draft a talented backup running back in the mid to late rounds of the draft if they give up Gipson. Giving up Bourne would be alright as well as they would be replacing him with Pickens.

The Steelers would be losing their second-best wide receiver, but they would be able to fill a hole they have like a backup quarterback or running back, and even get a talented veteran receiver to add to their room. They would also be acquiring picks to where they could draft a wide receiver to replace Pickens as well.

The Steelers would be able to get a cheaper and different type of receiver instead of having two similar ones, and they would also be able to get some pieces they need in return as well. This trade makes sense for both teams and could benefit both of them tremendously.

Although the Steeler’s new wide receiver duo has not even got to play a game together yet, the Patriots should still make the call as the Steelers know they are going to have to decide on Pickens by the end of the year. The Patriots could make a more than fair offer and lock up a 24-year-old receiver to be a dynamic duo with Drake Maye for the foreseeable future.