Michael Pittman Jr. found out about his trade to the Pittsburgh Steelers while in Uganda. (Photo by Kathryn Riley/Getty Images)

Getty Images

Michael Pittman Jr. is looking forward to a fresh start in his NFL career.

The 28-year-old had starred as the Indianapolis Colts’ go-to receiver over the years, posting over 1,000 receiving yards in two of the past five seasons, including a 109-reception year during the 2023 campaign.

However, the Colts struggled to break through the glass ceiling during Pittman’s tenure. Indianapolis made it to the playoffs during his rookie year, but hadn’t been back since the 2020 season. They narrowly missed the playoffs in four of the past five seasons, posting either 9-8 or 8-9 records during those seasons.

The veteran receiver was traded from the Colts to the Pittsburgh Steelers in the offseason where he’ll look to help the Steelers win their first playoff game since the 2016 season. Pittsburgh has also struggled in recent seasons when it comes to breaking through the glass ceiling. They’ve been to the postseason in each of the past three years, but have lost seven consecutive playoff games, with five of those losses being by double digits.

“When the news broke – I had known about it, and I knew it was going to come to fruition eventually – but the news broke when I was in Uganda,” said Pittman Jr. in a one-on-one interview. "I’m in this camp, there is a little bit of internet in the main center of the camp, so I’m just sitting there. I’m walking by, and all of a sudden my phone buzzes right, and then just all at once, just notifications.

“Because unless you’re right there, you have no Wi Fi,” Pittman Jr. continued to say. “And then obviously the news broke and and then everybody calling me, texting me, tweeting and all that. It was kind of crazy and and then fast forward to getting back, it was a crazy journey back to get to Pittsburgh so I could actually sign, so that was also crazy.”

The Steelers are coming off of a division title – their first since the 2020 season. They’re considered one of the better teams in the AFC, but they’re embarking on a new era. While they await Aaron Rodgers’ decision on whether or not he’ll return for a 22nd season, they’re ushering in a new era with Mike McCarthy as the new head coach.

McCarthy is obviously a proven winner having previously won a Super Bowl with Rodgers as his quarterback with the Green Bay Packers. McCarthy not only coached Rodgers and the Packers for 13 seasons, he had a notable tenure with the Dallas Cowboys in which he led them to three consecutive 12-win seasons.

Pittman Jr. reveals that the first two people from the Steelers he spoke to were McCarthy and general manager Omar Khan. The five-year veteran said he’s “excited” to be a part of McCarthy’s west coast offense. The two talked about moving Pittman Jr. all around the field and not just staying on the outside as he normally did during his Colts tenure.

What will also help is the fact that the Steelers already have DK Metcalf in the fold. Metcalf will be entering his second season in Pittsburgh and is one of the better physical receivers in the NFL as a former All-Pro and two-time Pro Bowl receiver. Metcalf posted 850 receiving yards and two touchdowns as Rodgers’ go-to target last season.

Both Pittman Jr. and Metcalf are 6-foot-4 and over 220 pounds, meaning they’re probably the biggest starting receiver duo in the NFL.

“He just said that he was excited about the things that this offense is going to do, because obviously him being a West Coast offensive coach and his history, and obviously he likes to throw the ball, which is what I like too,” said Pittman Jr. of McCarthy. “Just talking to him about the possibility of moving all over the field and not just staying outside and kind of being that guy so excited for that, excited to help his offense in any way that I can. Whether it’s catching passes or throwing blocks, I’m down for whatever it takes.”

Michael Pittman Jr. On Why Flag Football Is A Growing Sport, What Makes It Stand Out

While Pittman Jr. will be preparing for his debut season in Pittsburgh, he’s already becoming entrenched in the city through community events. The 28-year-old will help Toyota host an NFL Draft Flag Football Training Camp in the city of Pittsburgh leading into the NFL draft next Wednesday.

The event will feature invited Pittsburgh area high school female flag football players receiving mentorship from Pittman Jr., the U.S. Women’s National Flag Football team and others – NFL draft prospects Ty Simpson and Jordyn Tyson will be there – as they’ll also have the opportunity to walk to the NFL draft red carpet.

“Next week at the draft, Toyota is rolling out the red carpet and hosting a flag football training camp for youth girls, and I’m going to be out there coaching, and it’s going to be a great time,” said Pittman Jr. “The great thing is Toyota has already donated up to $3 million and been able to support 300,000 youth, which is great. We just want to uplift them and and we just want them to embrace their spotlight and every opportunity that they get going forward, and Toyota is going to do whatever they can to keep on uplifting this game and taking it to the next level.”

Pittman Jr. previously served as a coach during Toyota’s Glow Up Classic during Super Bowl week. Toyota will be covering NFL FLAG registration kit fees for players in the Pittsburgh Flag Football League coed youth and high school girls leagues.

He explains why flag football is such a great and growing sport. Flag football will be a part of the Summer Olympics moving forward starting in 2028 and NFL legend Tom Brady recently hosted a flag football event featuring many current and former NFL stars along with celebrities such as Logan Paul.

“Because it just lets more people into the sport of football,” said Pittman Jr. "Obviously, the NFL and flag are so different. They are two different types of athletes, right? There’s things that flag players do that NFL players can’t. I mean, the way they slide around and they do the limbo and avoid getting their flag pulled, I could never do that. My knees wouldn’t like me after that, for sure.

“There’s room for all of it,” Pittman Jr. continued. "I think that we clearly saw that when the NFL players played the flag football players. Obviously, the flag team won because they specialize in their sport, and we specialize in our sport. There's room for both of them.