recently, when Pittsburgh Steelers It feels like they are met with a stream of red lights when they focus on their trading targets. On countless occasions, they targeted a productive player and ran into logjams.

San Francisco’s Brandon Aiyuk had them stalled for weeks until the trade eventually fell through. They saw Davante Adams twice in three weeks and couldn’t pull the trigger there. DeAndre Hopkins injured Tennessee Titan. And if that’s not enough of a nightmare, Cooper Kupp He returned to the field on Thursday Night Football and was instrumental in the Los Angeles Rams beating the undefeated Minnesota Vikings five days earlier.

Omar Khan’s performance in trades has been so flawless that people around the league have warned against trading Khan Artist. But no one can hit 1,000. It’s a fact that the front office gets desperate and reaches out to a player or offers excessive assets for an ineligible recruit.

These are nightmare scenarios for the Steelers’ trade deadline possibilities and how they could backfire.

Cooper Kupp It would be a match made in heaven in Pittsburgh. The chances of him being traded after Thursday night are less than ever. The Vikings made sure of this. The trading market was cleared of competition. Unfortunately, Thursday night the Rams improved to a respectable 3-4, returning them to contention in the NFC West. At the post-game press conference, Sean McVay ruled out the possibility of Kupp being traded.

“I think a lot of what’s out there is speculation,” McVay said. “We are an organization from the inside out. “I’m delighted to have Cooper Kupp back with us, and I expect it to stay that way.”

Kupp would be a more expensive trade, but on the upside he would also be a potentially tremendous fit. Kupp is a dedicated blocker, an elite route runner, and what he lacks in raw speed he makes up for with steely trap hands. The nightmare came true as they escaped unscathed from Thursday night’s clash with Minnesota.

RussellWilson He could look outstanding against the Giants and make the Steelers feel comfortable with him as the permanent starter for the rest of 2024 and possibly beyond. Where does this leave Fields? The Steelers rejected the fifth year of Fields’ rookie contract for financial reasons, leaving them to decide whether he is a viable backup, a long-term project as a backup to Wilson, or trade bait.

His name was mentioned trade rumorshowever, Wilson’s age and recent injury history must be taken into account. If the calf injury that kept Wilson out for a month and a half recurs, they will be happy to have Fields replaced as soon as possible in place of Kyle Allen.

There’s also the possibility of Wilson regressing after the bye when the competition reaches another level of quality. They made a similar mistake a year ago when Joshua Dobbs briefly became a trailblazer in Minnesota. Fields is better than Dobbs, but a front office that knows his history is less likely to repeat it. The blowback from the Fields trade could shake the Steelers the hardest.

Mike Williams is the special among day traders at this stage of his career. He may be an incremental improvement over an irrelevant Van Jefferson, but is he worth the choice it would take to get him?

As one of six matches Aaron Rodgers‘ The primary receivers were a non-factor with 11 catches for 160 yards and zero touchdowns. So much for being a big target in the end zone. Williams’ reputation has reached the Marquez-Valdes Scantling level, which is disappointing because he was a reliable receiver who consistently won 50-50 battles before tearing his ACL.

Williams is touted as a talented deep threat, but back-to-back turnovers on deep routes in the final moments of attack and Williams’ inability to adapt to Rodgers; The shots placed him in the doghouse. Arguably, Williams has hit the downward slope that most receivers hit around age 30, and hoping that can be reversed is a pipe dream.