3rd year WR showing he's more than just speed

PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – In need of a number two receiver after trading Diontae Johnson the Steelers didn't make another big trade, they added a trio of veteran free agents. There is a returning receiver, in the same draft class as George Pickens, who believes he can do the job.

He thought he had turned the corner last year. Calvin Austin's first touchdown was a 72-yard bomb from Kenny Pickett at the Raiders on Week Three. Finally, a splash play the offense desperately needed and it came from the 5''9" second-year receiver. Austin wouldn't catch another touchdown all year and only eight more passes all season before getting a seven-yard TD in the playoff loss at Buffalo.

"I felt like it was almost a coming out party," Austin said during OTAs. "I finally got to go deep."

"Things happen."

You could tell he was probably holding back on thoughts about previous coaches or quarterbacks no longer with the team that impacted his opportunity to make an impact. He would just say sometimes the ball doesn't find you and that he had a lot of ups and downs.

Now he's back at OTAs showing, in shorts with no contact, he's more than a one-trick pony and able to make an impact with a new offense, new offensive coordinator and new quarterbacks. When asked about his receivers, the first one Russell Wilson mentioned during the first week of OTAs was Austin.

"In this league you gotta improve or you will be left behind," Austin said. "Each offseason you go in with a goal in mind and a mindset. I mean my mindset hasn't changed, I've always been a hard worker. I'm a guy that is going to do as best I can every time I step on the field. I'm just really, truly trying to be a complete receiver. I think it will show."

Austin said he's pushing to be great with the mindset of being a walk-on. He can still take the top off a defense, but has more to his game.

"I'm really out there knowing what I can do mid-route, quarter-route, during the route," Austin explained. "I can read and not going out there running. I think the game has slowed down even more and I'm feeling very, very comfortable."

Austin missed his entire first season due to a foot injury. He finished his college career averaging 16 yards a catch with 137 catches for 2,202 yards and 19 touchdowns with two more TDs as a kick returner, but it took him two years to show he could do it. Now Austin enters his third year with the Steelers. Is he now ready to be an impact receiver the Steelers need?