Steelers Acquiring Veteran Wide Receiver Allen Robinson Addresses Early Priority In 2023 For General Manager Omar Khan And Head Coach Mike Tomlin

The Pittsburgh Steelers entered the 2023 league year with a very young and largely inexperienced, but exciting wide receiver group. When General Manager Omar Khan and Head Coach Mike Tomlin began putting together their vision for the team, they knew that finding a veteran to help out Diontae Johnson, George Pickens, and company was a priority. 

To that end, the Steelers went out and acquired Allen Robinson from the Los Angeles Rams for a very low price. The move was among the topics that came up during the Steelers' annual pre-draft press conference with Khan and Tomlin speaking for the first time publicly since the trade was made.    

"Early on when coach [Tomlin] and I mapped out what we wanted 2023 to look like, one of the things we were keen on was acquiring a veteran wide receiver and we were excited we were able to get it done with Allen," Khan said. "Once the medical was confirmed to be ok, it was easy for us."

Tomlin added that the former Penn State star is a player they liked in the leadup to the 2014 draft and have kept tabs on him ever since. 

"He's an example of our general free agent interests, it goes all the way back to when he was at Penn State," Tomlin said. "Kevin Colbert and I spent a great deal of time with him and his family through his draft process. He was a 20-year-old coming into the draft and we held him in high regard. We liked the talent and the upside. We've followed him through his NFL journey and the interest remained."         

Steelers Plan For Robinson 

The two big questions with Robinson for Steeler Nation are about what kind of a role he will have in the offense and the lingering questions about his health. While the Steelers are looking for a new slot receiver after not really filling the role full-time after trading Chase Claypool, Robinson could factor in, but that might not be the extent of his contributions. 

"He's had experience as an inside guy," Tomlin said about Robinson. "He's got physicality in his game. He can drop his weight for a big."

He's suffered from a laundry list of different ailments like most NFL players, but coming off the second pedal foot fracture of his career, it's fair to be concerned about his health, despite him passing his physical which allowed the trade to happen. To try and ease this, the Steelers, according to Khan, have a plan ready to help him be as healthy as possible. 

"With regard to the medical, the doctors felt really good about him," Khan said. "We're going to be really smart kind of like how we were with Larry Ogunjobi last year. We are going to be conservative in the approach. We understand the importance of spring ball, but there are really no games being played until August."

It will be interesting to see how the conservative approach to bringing Robinson back from his foot surgery affects his playing time on gameday and in practice. Ogunjobi was often on the injury report last season as either a limited participant or given veteran days off. As Kaboly points out, Robinson is no stranger to changing quarterbacks, but finding him as much time possible to work with Kenny Pickett and learn the new offense will be key. 

Are you happy with Robinson's addition? Do Tomlin and Khan's comments change how you thought about the deal? Comment below!

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