{"id":276261,"date":"2026-04-18T14:05:59","date_gmt":"2026-04-18T18:05:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/?p=276261"},"modified":"2026-04-18T14:05:59","modified_gmt":"2026-04-18T18:05:59","slug":"steelers-jaguars-could-finalize-nfl-blockbuster-trade-during-draft","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2026\/04\/18\/steelers-jaguars-could-finalize-nfl-blockbuster-trade-during-draft\/","title":{"rendered":"Steelers, Jaguars Could Finalize NFL Blockbuster Trade During Draft"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Pittsburgh Steelers are still in the market for another wide receiver, and could target Jacksonville Jaguars Brian Thomas Jr in this year’s draft. Despite trading for Michael Pittman Jr<\/a>. to overhaul the offensive pass-attack, the Steelers might add one more receiver<\/a>, especially since DK Metcalf has been in numerous trade rumors this offseason. Thomas Jr is coming off the 2025 season on a down year, hauling in 48 receptions for 707 yards and two touchdowns. He needs a change of scenery, and even though he won’t get as many reps in Pittsburgh, it will buy him the opportunity to earn himself a full-time role behind Metcalf and Pittman.<\/p>\n

However, that will be if the Steelers decide to retain Metcalf before the 2026 regular season. Pittsburgh won’t send Metcalf in exchange for Thomas Jr., but they could give the Jaguars at least a second- and third-round pick. The Steelers would have Metcalf, Pittman and Thomas on the same roster, which sounds too sweet for whoever is the starting quarterback this upcoming season. This might motivate Aaron Rodgers to finalize his decision sooner rather than later, and could finally bring this team to the Super Bowl in more than a decade.<\/p>\n

<\/smartframe-embed><\/p>\n

Steelers, Jaguars Could Finalize NFL Blockbuster Brian Thomas Jr Trade During Draft<\/h2>\n

Originally selected in the first round, Thomas is still one of the most capable receivers in the league. The LSU product broke out during his rookie campaign, recording 1,282 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns. The talent is there, but he needs the right support system, and if Jaguars head coach Liam Coen doesn’t envision him having a bigger role, especially after giving Jakobi Meyers a new contract<\/a>, it’ll be best to let him walk.<\/p>\n

The Steelers won’t be the only team targeting Thomas Jr but these three other suitors could keep an eye on the receiver.<\/p>\n

Other Potential Suitors<\/h2>\n

Dallas Cowboys<\/h3>\n

Despite franchise tagging George Pickens, it shouldn’t stop the Dallas Cowboys from targeting another wide receiver. If Jerry Jones wants to be aggressive, the team trading for Thomas Jr. might be the right move. Dak Prescott<\/a> is entering a pivotal time in his career, and it’s better to surround him with as much talent as possible, even if it’s for two seasons. Thomas Jr. is still under a rookie contract, which makes it very affordable for Dallas to capitalize. Thomas Jr. won’t be starting over Pickens or CeeDee Lamb, but it allows the offense to shift nicely in transition.<\/p>\n

Carolina Panthers<\/h3>\n

Meanwhile, the Panthers need to address the wide receiving position. The team found a gem in Tetairoa McMillan<\/a>, and the same can be said about Jalen Coker. Unfortunately, the days are numbered for Xavier Legette, who is coming off back-to-back struggling seasons. If Legette is getting traded, the Panthers should try to get Thomas Jr. to increase the firepower in the aerial attack for QB Bryce Young.<\/p>\n

Baltimore Ravens<\/h3>\n

With the Ravens having only two top receivers in Zay Flowers and Rashod Bateman, the team is in dire need of a WR3. They can’t afford to lean on a veteran to address the backend behind Flowers and Bateman. DeAndre Hopkins probably won’t be back<\/a>, but Thomas Jr. is a good replacement, who has similar speed and characteristics to Flowers and Bateman, so this trade would make perfect sense for Lamar Jackson’s offense.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Pittsburgh Steelers, Jacksonville Jaguars could be close on finalizing a trade involving Brian Thomas Jr. this 2026 NFL Draft. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4795,"featured_media":276266,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":true,"sfio_embed_code":"<\/smartframe-embed>","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1647,10,30,19,13,36,6431,9],"tags":[33533,7723,32298,7739,7422,4871,9146,7335,32193,246,7366,7638,33031,9722],"class_list":["post-276261","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nfl-draft","category-ravens","category-panthers","category-cowboys","category-jaguars","category-nfl-news","category-nfl-teams","category-steelers","tag-2026-nfl-draft","tag-baltimore-ravens-news","tag-brian-thomas-jr","tag-carolina-panthers-news","tag-dallas-cowboys-news","tag-dk-metcalf","tag-george-pickens","tag-jacksonville-jaguars-news","tag-lastest-nfl-news","tag-nfl-news","tag-pittsburgh-steelers-news","tag-ravens-featured","tag-tetairoa-mcmillan","tag-zay-flowers"],"modified_by":"Anthony Palacios","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/276261","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4795"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=276261"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/276261\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":276289,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/276261\/revisions\/276289"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/276266"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=276261"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=276261"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=276261"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}