John Rhys Plumlee

Current Contract

Contract Value Index (CVI)

The Pittsburgh Steelers secured reasonable value with John Rhys Plumlee's one-year, $0.9M deal, earning a C+ CVI that reflects a fair market transaction for a developmental receiver with special teams upside. At just $900K annually, this represents minimal financial risk for a player still transitioning from his college quarterback background to the NFL wide receiver position, where his 4.3 speed and athletic versatility offer intriguing potential. The single-year structure is perfectly calibrated for both sides — Pittsburgh gets an affordable flyer on a unique skill set without long-term commitment, while Plumlee secures an opportunity to prove his worth in a receiver room that values depth and special teams contributors. His unknown production tier at the NFL level makes this essentially a lottery ticket contract, but one priced appropriately for a player who brings kick return capabilities and could develop into a gadget weapon in Pittsburgh's offensive system. This deal exemplifies smart roster building: low cost, high upside, and zero dead money risk if the experiment doesn't pan out.

Performance Analysis

John Rhys Plumlee is firmly in replacement-level territory at wide receiver for the Pittsburgh Steelers, and the D+ grade reflects a player still searching for a foothold in a position he converted to from quarterback. The most notable data point from his 2025 season is a single tackle across three games — a stat line that speaks more to special teams involvement than any meaningful offensive contribution, which is about as thin a production profile as you'll find on an NFL roster. His greatest weakness is exactly what you'd expect from a QB-to-WR transition still in progress: the on-field tape has generated virtually no buzz at the national level, and there's no evidence he's established himself as a reliable receiving option at this level. In three games, he operated strictly as depth, with his $0.9M salary accurately pricing out his standing as a developmental reserve rather than a contributor the coaching staff is counting on. Plumlee is 25 years old with just one season of NFL exposure, and the conversion process for quarterbacks moving to skill positions is notoriously slow — the learning curve in route running, release technique, and reading coverage doesn't compress easily. With the regular season still 135 days out, a strong training camp or preseason is genuinely the only path to changing the narrative around him, because right now the organization appears to be carrying him as developmental depth with no expectation of immediate impact.

Current Sentiment

John Rhys Plumlee enters the 2026 offseason in a precarious professional position after the Pittsburgh Steelers officially released him following the NFL Draft, ending his tenure with the organization before it could truly begin. The converted quarterback, who had been attempting to carve out a role as a wide receiver at the NFL level, was unable to secure a roster spot despite the positional transition generating modest intrigue during the offseason. All five recent news headlines surrounding Plumlee carry a uniformly negative tone, centering exclusively on his roster cut rather than any competitive performance or upside narrative. Media perception at this stage is largely defined by his inability to stick on an NFL 53-man roster, which significantly undermines any momentum he may have built during his college career at Ole Miss. Without a new signing or a notable workout generating buzz, Plumlee faces an uphill battle to rehabilitate his professional profile and will need a training camp opportunity elsewhere to meaningfully shift the narrative heading into the 2026 season.