Martavis Bryant goes to the Pittsburgh Steelers
Martavis Bryant (1) makes a touchdown catch as Ohio State Buckeyes cornerback Armani Reeves (26) defends during the second half in the 2014 Orange Bowl college football game at Sun Life Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-USA TODAY Sports
For the second straight year, the Pittsburgh Steelers have added the pure best deep threat in the draft class, as they selected Clemson Tigers No. 2 wide receiver Martavis Bryant with the 18th pick in the fourth round of the 2014 NFL Draft. Sammy Watkins’s partner in crime, Bryant averaged over 17 yards per reception last season, and he was consistently one of the most dangerous deep threats in college football, mostly due to an incredible combination of size and speed.
But while Bryant is explosive, he lacks polish and commits frustrating drops. That said, the Steelers like having playmakers downfield on their roster, largely because those types of receivers can excel with the strong-armed Ben Roethlisberger at the helm. Roethlisberger’s improvisational style and tendency to elongate plays also helps deep threats in the Steelers offense, because they have more time to get downfield, causing Big Ben to attempt more deep passes.
Bryant received a huge amount of pre-draft interest from teams, but he still fell to the fourth round despite receiving some second-round buzz thanks to the myriad of workouts. The Steelers have an elite WR1 in Antonio Brown and two bona-fide, young deep threats in second-year pro Markus Wheaton from Oregon State and Martavis Bryant.