Jets' Allen Lazard trade destination just became painfully obvious

To say Allen Lazard’s New York Jets tenure has been an adventure would be an understatement. It’s been defined by misfortune, drops, injuries, and multiple instances of being a healthy scratch.

The Iowa State product arrived in 2023 as a trusted target for Aaron Rodgers, only for Rodgers to famously tear his Achilles just four plays into the season. Lazard finished the year with just 23 receptions for 311 yards.

He rebounded in 2024 with a healthy Rodgers under center, posting 37 catches for 530 yards, but that production was overshadowed by six drops.

Then came another twist: the Jets let Rodgers walk, and he’s unsurprisingly thriving with the Pittsburgh Steelers, leading them to a 4–1 record while New York remains winless.

Lazard, meanwhile, has seen just six targets through four games and has become an afterthought buried deep on the depth chart, hardly a sign that he’s valued by the current regime.

And now, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter on The Pat McAfee Show, the Steelers are actively searching for a wide receiver to pair with Rodgers. If the Jets are looking for a trade partner for Lazard, this potential landing spot couldn’t be waving its arms any higher.

Pittsburgh makes too much sense to land Lazard

Before returning to the obvious part of this, the Steelers do, in fact, need another wide receiver beyond DK Metcalf.

Wideout depth in the Steel City is thin. Calvin Austin III is the only other natural receiver consistently making plays, while most of the passing work has gone to running backs Jaylen Warren and Kenneth Gainwell, who have combined for 32 receptions. Three tight ends have also been among the primary targets. That setup doesn’t exactly give Pittsburgh multiple downfield threats.

The Steelers could certainly use a higher-level receiver to stretch the field, but finding one more than a quarter of the way into the season and giving that player time to learn a new offense will not be easy.

So, what better solution than acquiring someone the quarterback already knows and trusts? Enter Allen Lazard.

Lazard has spent seven of his eight NFL seasons catching passes from Aaron Rodgers, with this year being the only one they have been apart, for now. They have been side by side for years, and Lazard remains one of Rodgers’ few longtime favorite targets still active in the league.

It is also hard to imagine the price tag being high if Pittsburgh and New York strike a deal. Lazard, as mentioned, is an afterthought in the Jets’ receiver rotation. Maybe the cost is a 2026 seventh-round pick, or even a 2027 seventh, at most. The Jets will not get much and would be lucky to get anything at all.

This feels like too easy of a match. Lazard does not have a future in New York, and Rodgers needs another weapon. Let’s see if the two sides tango before the trade deadline.