From the Notepad: Steelers Options to Replace James Washington
PITTSBURGH -- Reports say James Washington has requested a trade from the Pittsburgh Steelers. It's too early to say whether or not it'll come to fruition, but if it does, this team has options to replace him.
Whether or not Washington has turned his three-year career into a Pro Bowl-caliber performance or not doesn't mean everything. He's still a second-round pick with reliable hands, great speed and maybe the best worth ethic on the team.
The Steelers might not use him a ton, 30 passes for 392 yards and five touchdowns in 2020, but that doesn't mean finding his replacement comes easy.
They need a sure thing to fill in if they ship him elsewhere. Signing a veteran doesn't make a ton of sense with JuJu Smith-Schuster, Chase Claypool and Diontae Johnson on the depth chart, so instead, the team will look at players on the roster - or competing for a spot on the roster.
Here are some realistic options. This is under the assumption the receivers listed above and Ray-Ray McCloud are already on the roster.
Tyler Simmons
Simmons has come up in Mike Tomlin press conferences more than once. It's hard to remember if it was about his catching ability or route running, but you can certainly remember his remarks on special teams.
Tomlin loves Simmons' gunner skills on punt coverage. A shifty 6'0, 210-pound receiver has the physical traits to get around defenders and work his way downfield.
During the team's Hall of Fame Game win, Simmons caught the only receiving touchdown. That'll stand out when looking for roster options.
He's a name to remember.
Cody White
I've heard things about White. He's missed the last two weeks with a hamstring injury, but there's a reason the Steelers didn't waive/injury him when they knew he would need time to return to the field.
White is the first person on the field most days working with the jugs machine and catching passes from coaches.
The Steelers believe there's potential in White. According to sources, he had one of the "best offseasons of anyone" and "never drops the football." Something this team is looking to make a trend of after last season.
White did individual drills on Saturday. He needs to play in the preseason before there's enough confidence in his offseason work to move him up the depth chart.
"More than anything, he's just got to get healthy," Tomlin said.
There are pretty high hopes when that happens.
Matthew Sexton
The Ryan Switzer jokes are over. Sexton wasn't some who seemed very impressive heading into the Hall of Fame Game but came out looking like a possibility to climb the ladder on this roster.
Tomlin was thrilled to see his 36-yard punt return.
"I thought Sexton's was a big punt return. I thought it ignited us," Tomlin said. "I don't know that we had done much offensively to then. That was a springboard for us moving forward."
This isn't the first time he's caught the head coach's attention, either. When the media decided to talk to Rico Bussey after his breakout day at practice last week, Tomlin made sure to mention how Sexton has played well but no one wanted to talk to him.
Maybe we should start.
Anthony Johnson
Some will say the final name on this list should be Bussey. They're wrong. No wide receiver outside of the starting four has been more consistent than No. 83, Anthony Johnson.
At this point, Johnson has slowed down from his initial impression at camp. During OTAs and minicamp, he was top dog of the second-team receivers.
But anyone can look good in shorts.
"He's been with us. He's does a good job getting around, he knows where to be in different spots with us," offensive coordinator Matt Canada said. "He serves a good role with that."
Johnson has run second-team reps as much as any receiver during camp. He might not have any work with Roethlisberger, but the team considers him a higher-up as a backup.
Noah Strackbein is a Publisher with AllSteelers. Follow Noah on Twitter @NoahStrack, and AllSteelers @si_steelers.
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