Aaron Rodgers tried to recruit wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling to the Pittsburgh Steelers before he decided to go to the San Francisco 49ers.
Valdes-Scantling told Matt Barrows of NBC Sports Bay Area that Rodgers tried to recruit him, but he opted to go to the 49ers for opportunity instead with a similar scheme.
“He wanted me back over there,” Valdes-Scantling said. “There’s a lot of carryover with the system, being able to come in right away and not have to learn a whole new system,”
Valdes-Scantling, 30, played for two teams last season, the Buffalo Bills and New Orleans Saints. Across both teams, he had 19 catches for 411 yards and four touchdowns. A big play threat, Valdes-Scantling averaged 21.6 yards per reception.
To start off his career, Valdes-Scantling played with Rodgers from 2018 through 2021. He had over 400 receiving yards in all of those years, including a career-high 690 receiving yards in 2020.
Valdes-Scantling can play outside or inside, but has mostly played as the team’s Z-receiver. A 6-foot-4, 210 pound wide receiver, Valdes-Scantling ran a 4.37 40-yard dash coming out of USF in the 2018 NFL Draft.
Instead of signing Valdes-Scantling, the Steelers ended up re-signing wide receivers Robert Woods, Max Hurleman, and Ke’Shawn Williams to their practice squad.
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