JuJu Smith-Schuster Trade Rumors: 'No Truth' to Steelers Making WR Available

Don't expect to see JuJu Smith-Schuster suiting up for anyone but the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2020.

Judy Battista of NFL.com cited a "well-placed source" who said there is "no truth" to rumors the AFC North team would trade him to the San Francisco 49ers or any other organization this offseason.  

Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk noted speculation about whether the wide receiver will receive a "big-money second contract" as he approaches his fourth season "possibly has fueled" such rumors, but Pittsburgh will not be moving its No. 1 option in the aerial attack.

Smith-Schuster appeared well on his way to superstardom as a Pro Bowler in 2018 with 111 catches for 1,426 yards and seven touchdowns. It was a notable second season after he posted 917 receiving yards and seven touchdown catches as a rookie.

However, things changed in 2019, especially since defenses no longer had to worry about Antonio Brown when facing Pittsburgh and could direct more attention toward the USC product.

He finished with 42 catches for 552 yards and three touchdowns in 12 games, a significant dropoff from his previous production. Some of that can be explained away by Ben Roethlisberger's elbow injury, which limited the quarterback to a mere two games, but it wasn't the type of performance the Steelers were looking for from their supposed No. 1 receiver.

That puts plenty of pressure on Smith-Schuster heading into the 2020 campaign, which is the final season of his four-year contract.

How he performs will surely go a long way toward determining how significant of a raise he receives with his next deal. He's making just north of $1 million in base salary for 2020.

San Francisco would have made sense as a potential destination if the Steelers did trade him since the reigning NFC champions lost Emmanuel Sanders this offseason, but that apparently will not happen as Pittsburgh looks to bounce back from last season's 8-8 effort.