The NFL Draft is officially over and attention will shift to OTAs and off-season camps. The 90-man roster is set and the team will be looking at their depth chart for every position entering training camp. This series will examine who has the inside chances to be higher on the depth chart come August. For this edition, we will look at wide receivers.<\/p>\n
Possibly the most obvious decision of the depth chart projections, Brown is considered arguably the best wide receiver in the NFL and is on his way to breaking all Steelers receiving records. As long as he\u2019s a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Brown will likely be leading the team\u2019s corps of wide receivers.<\/p>\n
Bryant is coming off a year-long suspension for violating the NFL\u2019s substance abuse policy. After recently being officially reinstated by the league, Bryant is now ready and able to practice with the team and participate in league activities. Bryant recently posted a video on various social media platforms showing him running the 40-yard dash and recording an unofficial time of 4.27 seconds, just .05 seconds away from the all-time record set at this year\u2019s combine by rookie wide receiver John Ross<\/strong><\/a>. Bryant is clearly staying in great shape during his time away from football and as long as he stays out of trouble, he should be accompanying Brown on the field for the majority of the offensive play-calling.<\/p>\n A good number of Steelers fans were surprised when the team decided to take Smith-Schuster in the second round of the 2017 NFL Draft, but the team likely took the best player available at the time. Smith-Schuster is an extremely athletic and physical wide receiver, who will likely be considered a starter since the Steelers typically use three wide receivers. The Steelers struggled to find a solid number two option behind Brown last year and apparently weren\u2019t going to let that problem arise again this season. On top of having Bryant reinstated and drafting Smith-Schuster, the Steelers also signed former Buffalo Bills and Tennessee Titans wide receiver, Justin Hunter<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n Rogers filled in nicely last season as the slot wide receiver when Markus Wheaton<\/a><\/strong> got injured and then struggled for the rest of the year.\u00a0Sammie Coates<\/a><\/strong> seemed to be the team\u2019s replacement for Wheaton until he fractured two of his fingers and couldn\u2019t produce the same numbers. Rogers made the best of his opportunities and likely earned himself a spot on the roster until his contract expires in 2019.<\/p>\n Heyward-Bey, like Rogers, is signed through the 2018 season and becomes a free-agent in 2019. He’s been a welcome addition to the team since joining in 2016 and could even end up being a starter in 2017. After Brown, any of the other Steelers wide receivers could potentially win a starting job in 2017 and it wouldn\u2019t be that much of a surprise. Every receiver on the roster has started at least one game in the NFL except for rookie wide receiver Smith-Schuster.<\/p>\n As previously mentioned, the Steelers went out and signed free-agent wide receiver Justin Hunter to beef up their receiving corps. However, since signing Hunter, Bryant returned from suspension\u00a0and the team also drafted Smith-Schuster, leaving fans to wonder where Hunter fits into the mix. Because the Steelers made an effort to go out and sign Hunter, he\u2019ll likely find himself with a spot on the roster.<\/p>\n Coates started 2016 off with a bang, appearing to be Ben Roethlisberger<\/a><\/strong>\u2019s new deep threat, but seemingly fell off the radar after fracturing two of his fingers and attempting to play through the injuries. Coates was eventually overshadowed by Rogers and Heyward-Bey and never could really get back on the right track. Coates is signed through 2018, but isn\u2019t scheduled to make very much money, so it wouldn\u2019t be that surprising if the Steelers decided to cut or trade Coates.<\/p>\n Even though he\u2019s pretty far down this list, Hamilton did an exceptional job stepping into the starting role last season. With injuries and Bryant\u2019s suspension plaguing the team last year, Hamilton was a pleasant surprise and made numerous crucial plays for the team, especially late in the season. Hamilton struggled in the playoffs though, and that’s likely why the Steelers went out and signed Hunter. The fact that Hamilton is eighth on this list shows just how much depth the Steelers have at wide receiver.<\/p>\n Once again, the Steelers depth at wide receiver is ridiculous. Ayers also filled in and started for the Steelers last season due to injury issues, but the amount of talent at wide receiver makes it hard to find a spot where Ayers will fit on the roster. Ayers is basically a less-talented Rogers, so it\u2019s likely that he won\u2019t be making the team in 2017, even after being a dependable backup in 2016.<\/p>\n3.\u00a0JuJu Smith-Schuster<\/h3>\n
4.\u00a0Eli Rogers<\/a><\/h3>\n
5.\u00a0Darrius Heyward-Bey<\/a><\/h3>\n
6. Justin Hunter<\/h3>\n
7. Sammie Coates<\/h3>\n
8.\u00a0Cobi Hamilton<\/a><\/h3>\n
9.\u00a0Demarcus Ayers<\/a><\/h3>\n