PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Steelers might be in first place in the AFC North.
They’re hardly coasting.
Pittsburgh added wide receiver Mike Williams and outside linebacker Preston Smith at the trade deadline on Tuesday, giving the club veteran depth at two positions of need as the stretch run looms.
The Steelers sent a fifth-round pick to the New York Jets for Williams and a seventh-round selection to Green Bay for Smith.
Pittsburgh (6-2) is coming off its bye week atop the AFC North, but begins a difficult second half of the season on Sunday at surprising NFC East-leading Washington (7-2).
Acquiring Williams gives the Steelers a proven outside threat to put opposite George Pickens. Pittsburgh is talented but thin at outside linebacker. T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith are perhaps the best tandem in the league. But backup Nick Herbig has been slowed by a hamstring injury, though coach Mike Tomlin said Tuesday there’s a chance Herbig could be available against the Commanders.
The Steelers have been searching for a big target to complement Pickens since trading Diontae Johnson to Carolina last spring. They flirted with but couldn’t land Brandon Aiyuk - who opted to re-sign with San Francisco - over the summer and watched Davante Adams (Jets) and DeAndre Hopkins (Chiefs) go elsewhere in the AFC.
Williams, who signed a one-year, $10 million contract with New York in the offseason as a free agent, had just 12 catches for 166 yards in nine games with the Jets. He had only a 6-yard reception on just two targets in his past two games.
The 6-foot-4 Williams spent his first seven NFL seasons with the Chargers, for whom he caught 309 passes for 4,806 yards and 31 touchdowns. He tore the ACL in his right knee in Week 3 last year and missed the rest of the season. The Jets brought Williams along slowly throughout the offseason and in training camp, but he never seemed to click with Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers when he got onto the field.
Williams comes to a team that has seen an uptick in the passing game since Russell Wilson returned from a calf injury that forced him to miss Pittsburgh’s first six games. While Van Jefferson and Calvin Austin III have had their moments since Wilson was reinserted into the lineup, Williams’ size gives the Steelers another big body to use in the red zone alongside the 6-3 Pickens and 6-5 tight end Pat Freiermuth.
Tomlin made it a point to praise the work of his wide receiver group as a whole shortly before adding Williams.
“I just feel like we have a group that’s hardworking and capable and can’t wait to show the football world those capabilities,” he said. “And every time we step into a stadium, they get an opportunity to do so. And you (have) seen some examples of it already.”
Just not enough for the Steelers to seek an upgrade as the franchise tries to end a playoff victory drought that stretches to the 2016 AFC championship game.
Pittsburgh has been uncharacteristically aggressive in trying to revamp its offense over the past year, jettisoning quarterbacks Kenny Pickett, Mitch Trubisky and Mason Rudolph while adding Wilson and Justin Fields.
The results have been solid if not always spectacular so far. The Steelers are a respectable 13th in scoring after finishing 28th a year ago.
Still, significant challenges remain. Pittsburgh will play all three of its AFC North rivals twice over the final nine weeks to go with games against Washington, Philadelphia and Kansas City.
Tomlin acknowledged the club was active in the trade market, calling it prudent for a team that wants to be a “world championship outfit.”
Pittsburgh’s defense is among the league’s best - the Steelers are second in points allowed and ninth in yards allowed - but the pass rush isn’t quite as disruptive as it has been in recent years, due in part to opponents making it a point to get the ball out quicker.
Watt has 6 1/2 of Pittsburgh’s 19 sacks, numbers that are a little off the pace for both in recent years, though Highsmith missed three games with a groin injury and Herbig hasn’t played since injuring his hamstring on Oct. 6 against Dallas.
Smith has seen a dip in playing time in his 10th season after the Packers switched to a 4-3 defense. The 31-year-old has 2 1/2 sacks and six tackles for Green Bay, and played just 36% of the snaps against Detroit on Sunday. Smith has been productive throughout his career with the Commanders and the Packers, getting 68 1/2 sacks in 155 games.
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