Purchase or Promote: The Steelers shouldn’t have any curiosity in buying and selling for WR Chris Olave.
Clarification: Whereas there isn’t a sound reporting that the Steelers have any real curiosity in Chris Olave, there was buzz. Even when the origin of the excitement is shaky at finest, we will nonetheless presume Pittsburgh is exploring its choices. A minimum of in concept, buying and selling for Olave is one possibility, and Omar Khan all the time claims to be open to something.
Purchase:
The most important concern with Chris Olave the Steelers ought to have is his concussion historical past. After going via these points with Ladarius Inexperienced, who by no means performed once more, it’s a must to have considerations. Since getting into the NFL, he has sustained 4 documented concussions. Whereas cleared to renew play late final season, he didn’t, citing long-term well being considerations.
When you have a participant citing long-term well being considerations, you ought to be cautious of buying and selling for him. Chris Olave must be his personal high precedence, however the Steelers must be theirs. Whereas he has expressed each intention of enjoying this season, what occurs after his subsequent concussion?
There was some baseless hypothesis on the market about what the Saints may need for him, however since there isn’t a authentic substance behind that hypothesis, I’m not going to amplify it right here. Suffice it to say that to ensure that Olave to be the Steelers’ wile, he must be low-cost.
Promote:
Dangers are inherent to the game, and the Steelers are usually not going to penalize Chris Olave for not returning final season. Certainly, Mike Tomlin has developed an inclination of giving gamers additional time to heal in his later years. I feel it’s truthful to surprise if, had he been with the crew final yr, Olave would have been cleared to return.
However 2025 is a brand new yr, and there’s no assure he ever even suffers one other concussion. Olave has proven he may be productive when wholesome, and he’s nonetheless simply 25 years previous. He’s getting into simply the fourth yr of his contract, the Saints having exercised his fifth-year possibility. Even when the Saints finally need an excessive amount of from the Steelers for Olave, they need to at the very least have curiosity in him.
The Steelers are constructing towards the 2025 season, following yet one more disappointing yr. Whereas they reached the playoffs, they as soon as once more misplaced decisively within the first spherical. They’re going through questions, each publicly, and maybe privately as nicely. Questions on The Commonplace, and what the Steelers stand for.
The rookie class of a yr in the past was profitable, however they should step up into staple starters in 2025. And so they want everybody wholesome to do it, not an insignificant consideration. They wanted a powerful inflow of expertise in each free company and in the 2025 NFL draft but once more.
These types of uncertainties are what we are going to handle in our Purchase or Promote sequence. In every installment, we are going to introduce a subject assertion and weigh a number of the arguments for both shopping for it (which means that you simply agree with it or count on it to be true) or promoting it (which means you disagree with it or count on it to be false).
