Brian Thomas Jr. has been one of the most popular potential trade targets for the Pittsburgh Steelers. The only problem—and it’s a big one—is that the Jaguars don’t plan on trading him.
“Considering how the Jaguars offense flourished down the stretch, it would be a surprise if JAX dealt WR Brian Thomas Jr,” CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones wrote on X. “There’s been speculation that they could move him, but the Jags value the 2024 first rounder.”
Jones’ thoughts prompted a response from Jacksonville.com reporter Demetrius Harvey.
“Correct. There is no desire to offload Brian Thomas Jr. The speculation has been driven by fantasy football. Which is interesting,” he wrote.
Correct. There is no desire to offload Brian Thomas Jr.
The speculation has been driven by fantasy football. Which is interesting. https://t.co/haMl4IM9wh
— Demetrius Harvey (@Demetrius82) March 8, 2026
Thomas started at receiver last year alongside Parker Washington and Travis Hunter. They added Jakobi Meyers at the deadline after Hunter’s injury early in the season. Now they plan on making Hunter a full-time cornerback to end the experiment of playing him significantly both ways.
Depth receivers like Tim Patrick and Dyami Brown are also scheduled to become free agents at the start of the new league year on Wednesday. Moving on from Thomas would create a need at receiver and rock the boat for a team that just went 13-4, their best record since 1999.
ESPN’s Dan Graziano and Ben Solak listed Thomas as their No. 1 trade candidate this offseason. This was despite zero supporting evidence other than a down year. That sparked a full week or two of the news cycle with Thomas’s name involved.
Unless the extra buzz drummed up a market to give the Jaguars an offer they can’t refuse, we can probably all forget about the idea of Pittsburgh acquiring the former first-round pick. DJ Moore set the trade market at a second-round pick despite a much larger contract and being five years older. It would cost an arm and a leg to get a young first-round pick that had nearly 2,000 yards and 12 TDs in his first two seasons.
Jeremy Fowler listed a handful of receivers that are drawing trade interest around the league. Thomas wasn’t one of them, but there are three new names generating buzz for the Steelers to consider.
Recommended for you