Steelers New Wide Receiver Hopes to Channel Franchise Legend
This April, the Steelers signed wide receiver Robert Woods. He inked a one-year deal, securing his place as the new leader of the team’s wideout group. Woods often describes himself and his playing style as “grimy.” Wide receivers coach Zach Azzanni has seen Woods’ “grimy” style in his gameplay. This season, Woods is hoping to channel legendary Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward. Woods described his playing style as “a little bit of Hines.” Ward’s physicality and blocking abilities were the hallmarks of his playing style.
The Steelers chose Ward in the third round of the 1998 NFL draft. He played for the Steelers for his entire professional football career. Throughout his time with the team, he became their all-time leader in receptions, touchdown receptions, and receiving yards. Throughout his career, he’s had 1,000 catches and 85 receiving touchdowns. Ward has amassed 12,083 yards. He was a Pro Bowl selection for four consecutive years, from 2001-2004. Ward is a two-time Super Bowl Champion and was named MVP of Super Bowl XL. The Steelers defeated the Seattle Seahawks by a score of 21-10. The Steelers defeated the Arizona Cardinals 27-23 in Super Bowl XLIII. Ward was inducted into the Steelers Hall of Honor in 2019.
Woods characterizes a lot of defenders as “fake tough guys.” He said that the entire Steelers wide receiver room is going to adopt his playing mentality this season. He said, “We’re going to be physical in our position room. We’re going to be grimy. We’re going to be fighting to the end of the whistle, and just playing hard without the football, I think, is the biggest thing in our room.” Woods is six feet tall and weighs 193 pounds.
Woods was chosen by the Buffalo Bills in the second round of the 2013 NFL Draft. He remained with the Bills until the 2016 season ended. Woods signed with the Los Angeles Rams in 2017. He had back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons in 2018 and 2019. Woods became a Super Bowl Champion during his time with the Rams. The Rams defeated the Cincinnati Bengals 23-20 in Super Bowl LVI. Woods signed with the Tennessee Titans in 2022. After one season with the Titans, he inked a deal with the Houston Texans. He spent two seasons with them. During the 2024 season, Woods had 20 receptions for 203 yards. Throughout his NFL career, he has amassed 683 receptions for 8,076 yards and 38 touchdowns. Woods brings 12 years of reliability and physicality to the Steelers.
