The Pittsburgh Steelers could be described as “fairly inactive” during the early phases of 2017 free agency.  Fans saw the rival Cincinnati Bengals and Baltimore Ravens ink numerous new players, while the Steelers remained focused on in-house signings and not letting their opponents spending influence their own. This laid back approach to free agency rarely sits well with most fans, however, it’s the way Pittsburgh always does business.

And there’s nothing wrong with that.

Just when it looked like the Steelers would do absolutely nothing to move the proverbial needle, a signing came across the wire. On March 15th, Pittsburgh agreed to terms on a one-year contract with former 2013 second round pick (34th overall by Tennessee), Justin Hunter. To some, bringing Hunter into an already crowded wide receiver room was anything but exciting. But for me, I see a young, and talented player being added to the monstrous mix. Justin Hunter is only 26 years old. After reviewing his film, I believe his best days are still ahead of him. His most productive season of his short career was in 2014, but he matched his highest touchdown mark (4) last year.

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Why does this matter?

2014 was the infamous Zach Mettenberger “defeated” season. Mettenberger couldn’t muster a win during his starting role with the Titans. As we now know, Steelers fans never got to see the “potential” of Mettenberger realized, but because of his raw ability (mainly his arm strength), he is the second-most talented quarterback Hunter has ever worked with.

Unless you think Jake Locker and Charlie Whitehurst are all world gun-slingers, Justin Hunter’s top quarterbacks have been Zach Mettenberger (2014) and Tyrod Taylor (2016). Current franchise quarterback, Marcus Mariota had arrived in 2015, the same year that was cut short for the receiver due to injury. Otherwise, the duo of Hunter and Mariota could have made sweet music.

It’s only reasonable to suggest that Ben Roethlisberger, a future hall of fame quarterback, will bring out the best in Hunter.

The newest addition to the receiver room should fit right in with the way Roethlisberger loves to push the ball down the field and has a nose for the end zone. The 6″4 target has reeled in 12 touchdowns since entering the league and often flashes his big-play ability, averaging 16.7 yards per catch over the course of his four-year career. To put that in perspective, Martavis Bryant averages 17.3 yards per catch to date.

Justin Hunter has always shown he can make plays, when on the field. Injuries to both he, and his starting quarterbacks dating back to his college days, have derailed his success. However, he has always been a freakish athlete.

In 2010, Hunter was a junior on Team USA for the long jump. He continued his track and field success at the college level at The University of Tennessee, where he made All-American as a freshman (indoor and outdoor!) The world was looking to be Hunter’s oyster until an ACL tear pumped the breaks on that. He was a starting wide receiver for the Tennessee Vols as a sophomore but tore his knee three games into that season. The ACL tear was so bad it forced him to hang up his track spikes to focus solely on a return to football.

Normally, being forced to quit anything would be mentally defeating. However, Hunter clearly used that as motivation to hit his rehab 100%, because his junior season was his best one. He made the 2012 All-SEC 2nd team and earned an invite to the NFL Scouting Combine after declaring for the draft. The young wideout put on a show for scouts at the combine, posting the best vertical and broad jump of his class. That shouldn’t have been much of a surprise with his track background, but his 4.44 (official) 40-yard dash along with his tall frame caught a lot of attention. Some NFL analysts were mocking Hunter into the late first round after his combine performance, and they were almost spot on with their assessment. (He was taken early in the second, 34th overall.)

The Tennessee Titans took a swing and tried to land their future number one target. Unfortunately, relating back to my earlier point, injuries stopped any blips of excitement Hunter was able to produce while in Tennessee.

And trust me, there were blips…

Game winner against San Diego

Breaking free against Oakland

Running free in the Broncos secondary

In November 2015, Hunter had surgery to repair a fractured ankle and was placed on season-ending IR. His run in Tennessee was over. He was waived and would be claimed by the Miami Dolphins. His stay there did not last long. Although agreeing to a pay cut Miami cut ties with the receiver in September 2016. Hunter was then claimed off waivers by Buffalo, where he carved cut a small role with the Bills, and scoring four touchdowns in 2016 (tying a career best).

Take this for what it’s worth, but after last season, I saw a large portion of the Bills fan base that was very unhappy to see Hunter leave. Those fans saw the same potential that I’m seeing now, such as Del Reid, co-founder of the Bills Mafia fan club and owner of 26Shirts.com:

Yeah, a bunch of fans were bummed to see Hunter go. He seemed to have a good rapport with Tyrod Taylor.

I remember hoping they’d draft him in 2013. Tall guys that have reliable hands are always good to have in the red zone. Instead, they ended up with Robert Woods and Marquise Goodwin. Last year the Bills had all three, and now they’re all gone!

There seems to be this perception in Pittsburgh that because the Steelers already have the likes of Martavis Bryant, and Sammie Coates, that a player of their similar skill set is an unnecessary addition. However, I see no reason why the three of them cannot coexist in the same offense.

In fact, I view having three receivers that are all at least 6″2′ tall and capable of running sub-4.4 40’s as a very good thing!

I don’t know about the rest of you, but I can’t wait to see what Justin Hunter brings to the team. Remember, Pittsburgh only signed the 26-year-old to a one-year “prove it” deal. Thus, this is technically a contract year for Hunter. We all know how receivers perform in contract seasons when they’re healthy.

The Steelers could have a superstar right under their nose, but only time will tell.