Steelers Proposed Trade Pairs DK Metcalf With Speedy Saints WR
The Pittsburgh Steelers are off to a 4-1 start, led by veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers. With the rest of the AFC North falling apart, Pittsburgh is in prime position to win its first division title since 2020.
Knowing this is likely Rodgers’ swan song, the Steelers have been unusually aggressive in the trade market dating back to the offseason. They’ve made some bold moves on offense to maximize the 41-year-old’s final run — trading with the Seahawks for DK Metcalf while sending George Pickens to the Cowboys.
Even so, there’s still one glaring need on this roster: wide receiver depth.
In his latest trade proposal, ESPN’s Bill Barnwell suggested that the Steelers acquire Rashid Shaheed from the New Orleans Saints in exchange for a 2026 fourth-round pick.
“Enter Shaheed, who is a free agent after the season,” Barnwell wrote. “Since entering the league in 2022, the undrafted Weber State product has averaged 15.6 yards per reception, fourth best in the NFL over that span. He has also been a return man in the past, something the Steelers wouldn’t mind adding after taking rookie Kaleb Johnson off kick returns in September. Shaheed will make $2.8 million over the remainder of 2025, a very reasonable price for what he brings to the table as a secondary option in the passing game.”
Why Rashid Shaheed Makes Sense for the Steelers
As good as Metcalf has been this season, Rodgers is going to need more help if the Steelers hope to make a deep playoff run. Metcalf leads the team with 19 catches for 356 yards and four touchdowns, while running back Jaylen Warren is second with just 153 yards and one score.
Calvin Austin III was serving as Pittsburgh’s WR2 before suffering a shoulder injury, but even before that, he averaged only 1.5 yards per route run. Rookie Roman Wilson has been a nonfactor so far, posting just two receptions for 19 yards.
“The Steelers are one of just two teams that haven’t completed a single pass traveling 30 or more yards in the air this season, and Aaron Rodgers has attempted only one such throw through five games,” Barnwell noted. “(It was a duck to an open Metcalf, but Rodgers’ arm has generally looked fine this season.)”
Shaheed would instantly help in that area. One of the fastest players in the league, the Saints wideout had ran a documented 4.39 40-yard dash and brings legitimate vertical speed to any offense.
Rashid Shaheed Set to Be Free Agent in 2026
Shaheed’s contract situation also makes him an appealing target for Pittsburgh. The 27-year-old is in the final year of his rookie deal, making him affordable both in trade compensation and salary. That gives the Steelers the chance to evaluate him for the remainder of the season and potentially sign him to a new deal to stabilize their receiving corps beyond 2025 for their next quarterback.
In four seasons with the Saints, Shaheed has caught 120 passes for 1,872 yards and 12 touchdowns, averaging 15.6 yards per reception.
“The Saints have shipped out too much draft capital for a 1-5 team with no aspirations of contending,” Barnwell wrote. “Getting some of that back in a Shaheed deal would make sense, and though they could potentially land a compensatory pick if Shaheed leaves in free agency, this is an organization that will likely be spending on the open market and canceling out compensatory picks next offseason.”
For a Steelers team trying to win one last time with Rodgers, a trade for Shaheed could be the low-cost, high-upside move that pushes their offense to another level.
Ravens Legend Ray Lewis Urges NFL to Investigate Referees After Steelers’ Controversial Loss to Bengals: “They Got Robbed, and the League Can’t Ignore This.”
Cincinnati, OH – October 14, 2025 — Even the fiercest rival the Pittsburgh Steelers have ever known couldn’t stay silent after what unfolded on Thursday Night Football. Ravens Hall of Famer
Ray Lewis — the face of Baltimore’s defensive legacy — has broken his silence following the Steelers’ heartbreaking 31–33 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, calling for an official NFL investigation into what he labeled
“a disgrace to the game.”
“No one wanted the Steelers to lose more than I did — but not like this,” Lewis said. “The Steelers got robbed, and everyone who watched that game knows it. Those calls weren’t just wrong — they stole what this team fought for.”
His words echoed across the league, igniting an instant storm online as fans and analysts questioned the officiating that tilted momentum in Cincinnati’s favor. Two pivotal calls have since drawn heavy scrutiny — both shifting the outcome of one of the AFC North’s most heated battles.
With 2:52 left in the fourth quarter, quarterback Aaron Rodgers launched a deep pass toward DK Metcalf that was intercepted by Bengals corner Jordan Battle. Replays revealed the throw sailed inches beyond Metcalf’s fingertips before contact, appearing
uncatchable. Despite the magnitude of the play, referees refused to initiate a review, handing Cincinnati possession that led to the game-winning field goal.
Aaron Rodgers has ~words~ for the officials after this is ruled an INT
pic.twitter.com/vFav3z5qm6 — Jori Epstein (@JoriEpstein) October 17, 2025
The moment sparked outrage across X under the trending tag #RiggedTNF, with analysts calling it one of the season’s biggest officiating failures.
“That’s a play that changes standings, playoff implications, and locker rooms,” said former ref analyst Terry McAulay. “If that’s not reviewed, what is?”
Earlier, a questionable holding call on center
Zach Frazier in the third quarter erased a key conversion and killed a promising Steelers drive. On film, Frazier appeared to anchor perfectly — no grab, no twist, no pull — yet the 10-yard penalty forced a punt.
“That call was soft,” wrote ESPN’s Mina Kimes. “You can’t penalize clean blocking in that moment.”
Even Bengals fans admitted online that something felt off, noting the 11–4 penalty imbalance
that consistently pushed Pittsburgh backward. And while Cincinnati celebrated, Ray Lewis’ unexpected defense of his long-time rival stole the postgame spotlight.
“You don’t have to wear black and gold to see what happened,”
he said. “You don’t cheat the game to win it. If the NFL ignores this, then the message is clear — fairness is optional.”
The league has yet to release any official statement on the officiating controversy, but pressure is mounting for the NFL’s competition committee to review the tape.
As Lewis concluded, “The Bengals got the win. The Steelers got robbed. But what really lost tonight — was the integrity of football itself.”
