After roughly a month, the Pittsburgh Steelers‘ on-again, off-again pursuit of Miami Dolphins tight end Jonnu Smith finally finished “on,” with the 2024 Pro Bowler heading to Pittsburgh in the Jalen Ramsey-Minkah Fitzpatrick swap.
Smith is the latest — and potentially final — significant addition to a Steelers offense that needed upgrading. Pittsburgh acquired DK Metcalf from the Seahawks in early March and immediately gave him a five-year, $150 million extension.
As Pittsburgh awaited for an Aaron Rodgers verdict, rumblings of interest in Smith emerged. The Dolphins appeared to be in a bit of a pre-transitionary phase early in this offseason — a Ramsey deal seemed inevitable by mid-April — and Pittsburgh’s interest in Smith began just days before Rodgers arrived. In other words, Smith had been on the Steelers’ radar for a while, perhaps in an attempt to help lure Rodgers to the Steel City.
Even though he arrived weeks after Rodgers, Smith still shows the Steelers’ commitment to winning with Rodgers this year. Here are four reasons Smith can be a strong fit.
Smith’s fit as an explosive player after the catch
Smith had a banner year in his first campaign in Miami, posting 88 catches for 884 yards and eight touchdowns, the first two figures career highs, the third tying a career high. It continued an upward swing for Smith, who had set career bests in catches (50) and yards (582) the year before with the Falcons.
It’s not just the numbers Smith produced, but how he produced them. Last year, Smith averaged 5.8 yards after catch, fourth among the 20 tight ends with least 50 catches. This was not a one-off; in 2023, Smith’s 7.1 yards after catch average was third among 19 tight ends with at least 50 catches.
Last year, the Steelers as a team ranked 19th in average yards after catch, and their tight ends ranked 23rd in that category. Smith brings immediate juice to a group currently led by Pat Freiermuth and Darnell Washington.
Smith’s fit with Rodgers and vice versa
Wide receiver remains a work in progress in Pittsburgh. After acquiring Metcalf and trading away Robert Woods, the rest of Pittsburgh’s wide receiver corps is headlined by Calvin Austin III, Robert Woods and Roman Wilson. While each one has some qualifications — Austin’s speed, Woods’ experience and blocking, Wilson’s draft acumen — it’s certainly not a loaded group.
Pittsburgh should, in theory, have a solid offensive line, and third-round rookie Kaleb Johnson with veteran Jaylen Warren serves as a capable running back duo.
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Rodgers’ average pass last year went just 6.9 yards downfield, tied for the lowest in his career, and he averaged just 2.7 seconds to throw, his second-lowest figure since such tracking began (2017). He is not the play extender he once was. He wants to get the ball out quickly, especially when looking for tight ends. His 4.8 air yards per attempt last year when targeting tight ends was the lowest in his career.
That’s where Smith comes in. His 4.9 air yards per target was 18th out of 20 tight ends with at least 50 catches last year. He is a “get it and go” type of player, one who can work effectively as a safety valve or a quick first option. Rodgers will like that a lot.
Smith’s fit in the tight end room
While the wide receiver corps would remain a significant uncertainty beyond Metcalf, the Steelers adding Smith gives them a well-rounded, deep tight end room. Freiermuth is a big target (6-foot-5 and 258 pounds) and fresh off a 65-catch, 653-yard, seven-touchdown campaign. He is at his best as a vertical receiver — seam balls, especially — when he can get rumbling in a straight line.
Washington, who is 6-7 and listed at 264 pounds, is a behemoth tight end who is essentially a sixth offensive lineman. Rodgers would certainly appreciate him after taking a beating in New York. Washington graded out well as a pass blocker and very well as a run blocker, and at only 23, he’s still developing.
Smith, in this scenario, could serve as a tight end in name but a wide receiver in use. He’s not much of a run blocker — Miami threw the ball 77% of the time when he was on the field, compared to 36% of the time when he wasn’t — and he lines up all over the field, which would give Pittsburgh an element it currently doesn’t have. In fact, Mark Kaboly reports that Pittsburgh will use Smith as a tight end, a slot receiver and a fullback.
Smith’s fit, experience with Arthur Smith
Smith played for current Pittsburgh offensive coordinator Arthur Smith in both Tennessee and Atlanta. In fact, in 2023, Jonnu Smith overtook former first-round pick Kyle Pitts as the Falcons’ top-producing tight end down the stretch, a testament to how highly Arthur Smith views him.
Arthur Smith uses two tight ends a lot. The Steelers ran the fifth-most plays with multiple tight ends on the field last year, and given what the wide receiver room looks like, they could lean even more heavily on that. With Jonnu Smith in the fold, Arthur Smith could mix and match how he pleases, giving the offense advantageous groupings based on the play, with Jonnu Smith mostly in on passing plays, Washington mostly in on running plays and Freiermuth used in all situations.
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Author: Zachary Pereles
June 30, 2025 | 5:35 pm
