Steelers - WR factory (??)

No disrespect intended toward Hines! He has been one of the greatest Steelers and team guys in the team's history. The young guns - Wallace, Brown, Sanders have really been awesome and are clearly our future at WR.

If these young guys keep performing the way they are, I'm not sure we will be able to pay them what they could land on the market. There are teams out there that will pay more for their services as FA's. We have a history of some really top notch WR's coming up in the Steelers org and then moving on to other teams to be their #1 or #2 guys. Just off the top of my head is Holmes, Burress, Nate Washington. Sweed is out there on the block now and not sure where he'll end up, but he could be a surprise somewhere (OK... bit of a longshot there). What other WR's can you think of who came from the Steelers and went to another team to be their #1 / #2 WR?

Is anyone else surprised at the number of elite WR's that the Steelers seem to draft that come through the Steelers system in the past few years? We have brought in a few veteran #3 / #4 guys - Battle, ARE, Cotchery, but our top guys seem to always be Steelers-bred. I think that is just awesome and really shows that the FO is doing a great job getting the WR talent (and TE, BTW) to give BR the tools to be a top passing QB and have a productive passing O.

 

You named all of them. And that's plenty (5). Not sure I'd put Washington in that group. I still have hopes for Sweed. There seems to be something weird going on with that pick other than just a bust.

Whoever is directly responsible for scouting the WR's, I hope can do the same in other areas (OL & CB) or teach the scouts there. Maybe a future GM.

 

Best young trio in the game, easily. If they could get a big WR to throw into the mix a bit down the road, wow.

I wonder if Hines will be brought on as a WR coach next year if he actually does retire. For this group of young WRs, they've had to have learned everything they know about playing WR in the NFL from him, and the results speak for themselves.

 

Thigpen moved on while he still had alot left (went to the Titans, or was it still Oilers then?)