JuJu Smith-Schuster

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster reportedly has filed a trademark request for "IT'S LITTY," according to Jeremy Fowler of ESPN.  

Per Fowler, Smith-Schuster would be using the trademark for "apparel and cell phone accessories" through his Team JuJu LLC.

Smith-Schuster, 23, caught 42 passes for 552 yards and three touchdowns in 12 games last year, easily the worst season in his three-year career. To his credit, the loss of starting quarterback Ben Roethlisberger for the season early on didn't help matters.

In other words, the 2019 season was not, in fact, "litty" for Smith-Schuster. But if his trademark is approved, he'll soon be able to produce apparel and cell phone accessories that are. 

Ben Roethlisberger is coming back to the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2020, and wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster believes the team is in line for a "big year." 

He revealed as much during an appearance on NFL Network's Good Morning Football:

"Honestly, I think it's going to be a big year for us," he said. "I was very happy with the draft picks we got, being able to draft a running back, being able to draft [Chase] Claypool. Good defense. We already had a solid defense. Our missing piece was Ben. I think coming up this year, it's going to be a great year for us. ... Just wait. Honestly, I just gotta say just wait and let our pads do the talking."

Big Ben played just two games last season before undergoing elbow surgery in September.

While he is a physical quarterback who has never backed away from contact and missed games at times, Roethlisberger has been fairly durable under center. He played double-digit games every season of his career that started in 2004 until the 2019 campaign.

The Steelers released video of the signal-caller throwing with Smith-Schuster, which also turned heads because he got the haircut he said he wouldn't until he could throw at full strength again following the surgery:

Pittsburgh managed to go 8-8 in 2019 even with Roethlisberger's injury and running back James Conner appearing in just 10 games. It was also the team's first season since both Le'Veon Bell and Antonio Brown left.

There are plenty of questions about Roethlisberger heading into the 2020 season following his injury, especially since he is 38 years old. It is likely unrealistic to expect the six-time Pro Bowler and two-time Super Bowl champion to play like he did in his prime, although he isn't far removed from leading the league in passing yards in 2018 with 5,129.

His presence should help Smith-Schuster bounce back as well considering the USC product finished last year with 512 receiving yards after tallying 1,426 in 2018.

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Ryan Switzer said Wednesday quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has started throwing his complete repertoire of passes at peak velocity during a workout Saturday. 

Switzer, who was part of the session, told Mark Kaboly of The Athletic it felt like Big Ben was back to full strength after being limited to two appearances last season before suffering an elbow injury:

"Man, he let it rip. There was no restraint, no hesitancy, he was just out there. He has been throwing like that for a while and, in my opinion at least, getting out there on that field for the first time and throwing full-speed routes was refreshing. The control factor was taken out of it. He was out there and he was throwing. Did some off-schedule stuff. No restraints. He threw everything—across his body. Everything."

Roethlisberger posted a teaser video from the workout Monday, which featured him saying he wasn't going to cut his hair or trim his beard until he could throw legit NFL passes again after undergoing surgery in September. The video shows glimpses of him throwing then cuts to him getting a haircut:

The 38-year-old Ohio native brought in Switzer, No. 1 wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster and running back James Conner for the throwing session in Pittsburgh. 

"You know, like when the ball cuts through the air and you can hear that 'pfft-pfft-pfft' sound?" Switzer told Kaboly. "That's what JuJu said it sounded like. I didn't hear it but, man, I have been trying to catch with no gloves for a couple of months to build up these callouses, but ask my hands how they feel catching his throws."

The Steelers' lack of offseason moves at quarterback suggested the front office was optimistic about the six-time Pro Bowl selection making a complete recovery.

Pittsburgh didn't make any marquee additions at the sport's most important position during free agency or the draft. It's set to head into the season with four unproven options—Mason Rudolph, Paxton Lynch, Devlin "Duck" Hodges and J.T. Barrett—competing for one or two reserve roster spots.

It puts pressure on Roethlisberger to not only stay healthy but also to produce a bounce-back campaign for a team otherwise primed to contend in the AFC. Switzer said he's working hard to make it reality, per Kaboly.

"Somebody with the accolades, has all the money in the world and to have an injury like this and to see that drive ... I think a lot of people would be like, 'You know what I have accomplished everything I wanted to accomplish and I have the money, what am I doing?'" Switzer said.

Roethlisberger remained highly productive in 2018 as he completed 67 percent of his throws for 5,129 yards with 34 touchdowns and 16 interceptions while playing all 16 games.

The Steelers are hoping he can return to that level in 2020, and the early signs are promising.

Ladies and gentlemen, Ben Roethlisberger has gotten a haircut. 

The Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback released a hype video on Monday regarding the trim after announcing in September that he wouldn't be cutting his hair or beard until he could throw a pass to one of his teammates following season-ending surgery on his right elbow.

The passes have been thrown to JuJu Smith-Schuster, James Conner and Ryan Switzer. The hair has been cut. The 38-year-old's comeback is underway. 

It's good news for a Steelers franchise that just missed the postseason in consecutive years for only the third time this century. 

The Pittsburgh Steelers added another offensive weapon in the second round of the NFL draft on Friday, selecting Notre Dame wideout Chase Claypool.  

That gives quarterback Ben Roethlisberger another weapon alongside JuJu Smith-Schuster. So, how should fantasy football players feel about Claypool?

Let's break down Claypool's game to start. He's big (6'4" and 238 pounds), fast (4.42 40-yard dash) and was productive in 2019, catching 66 passes for 1,037 yards and 13 touchdowns. He'll likely be best utilized as a possession receiver and red-zone threat at the next level. He tends to win at the point of attack on contested throws.

While he does have good top-end speed, he doesn't get great separation at the line of scrimmage, meaning he won't blow away corners early in his routes. That means his top-end speed factors into his game less than you might expect. He also isn't great after the catch. 

But the Steelers don't need him to be a WR1, with Smith-Schuster filling that role. 

What his selection should do is allow the Steelers to move Smith-Schuster back to the slot, meaning Claypool could quickly emerge as Roethlisberger's best target on the outside. In that regard, he has very real fantasy upside.

Certainly, his potential is evident:

Fantasy receivers are a risk, but Claypool heads to a solid offense with a good quarterback and an avenue for plenty of targets. He could very well be the team's No. 2 option in the passing game, though with Eric Ebron at tight end and James Conner proving effective as a receiver out of the backfield, he could also be fourth or fifth in the passing game hierarchy. 

The safe bet is to consider him in the WR4-5 range when you draft. But the Steelers tend to draft wide receivers very well, and Claypool fits a very real need for this team. He has flex upside, making him a very interesting sleeper.

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.

Adidas announced Monday that Alabama quarterback and projected first-round pick Tua Tagovailoa signed with the apparel company. He was greeted by Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster, a fellow Adidas athlete, to talk about the decision. 

"I got really close with Adidas when I went to my first Steve Clarkson Camp," Tagovailoa said. "And so from there it took off. The relationships you build with everyone, it's like a family. It's just how they make you feel, it's not just something they say—that it's family—but it's something you really feel and something you can see."

The pair also talked about how Tagovailoa is preparing for the draft amid the COVID-19 pandemic. 

"Been training, been finding ways to do things," he said. "Footwork and throwing the ball. I'm at the lake house right now so I'm just fishing. And just a lot of spending time with my family. That's really the biggest thing." 

Tagovailoa is projected to fall somewhere in the first round, and where he lands will be one of the biggest stories in Thursday's first round, with buzz building that he could drop down the board due to his lengthy injury history. 

Juju Smith-Schuster went live on Twitch on Thursday night to play against fans in Madden 20 and wasn't afraid to let his opinions fly.  

After putting out a call on Twitter for an opponent, Smith-Schuster connected with a college senior in the Bay Area. While the match itself was exciting—the Pittsburgh Steelers wideout won in overtime after betting a signed jersey on the outcome—it was the conversation the two had that was most enjoyable. 

The two started talking about their favorite receivers in the league with Smith-Schuster claiming the New Orleans Saints' Michael Thomas is No. 1 on his list. Right behind Thomas, Smith-Schuster named DeAndre Hopkins, Devante Adams, Julio Jones and Stefon Diggs.

Smith-Schuster was asked about the Hopkins trade made this summer, which sent the Pro-Bowl receiver from the Houston Texans to the Arizona Cardinals, and while he felt bad the wideout won't have a chance to continue playing with quarterback Deshaun Watson, he understood why the deal was made.

"It's the business," Smith-Schuster said. "If you can't pay the man, you've got to get your worth out of him."

In a later match against a University of Kansas freshman, Smith-Schuster went on record as saying cornerback Jalen Ramsey is the biggest trash-talker he's faced in the NFL. 

Nearly 1,000 fans tuned in to watch the stream, which featured Madden dropping in cheat codes and links in the chat while Smith-Schuster continued to take on different gamers. 

As for how he feels the 2020 NFL season will turn out, Smith-Schuster said as long as everyone on the Steelers remains healthy, there's no reason they can't contend for another Super Bowl title. 

On Thursday there was no stopping Smith-Schuster as he won both Madden games in overtime, first with the Saints, then with the Kansas City Chiefs. 

The Pittsburgh Steelers and JuJu Smith-Schuster may be heading for a divorce—just not for at least the next 12 months. 

Responding to a question from a reader, The Athletic's Ed Bouchette said he believes Smith-Schuster will not be tagged and will hit the open market in 2021.

"I don't see them applying a tag, which would not be necessary until next year anyway," Bouchette wrote. "They might try to sign him to a new contract, but based on last season, what he thinks he's worth and what they want to pay him may be far apart. My prediction is he will enter the final season of his contract this year and become a free agent in 2021 as others at that position before him did, such as Mike Wallace and Emmanuel Sanders."

Smith-Schuster is coming off a wildly disappointing 2019, setting career lows in receptions (42), receiving yards (552) and touchdowns (three). While he had to spend nearly the entire season playing without quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, Smith-Schuster also clearly struggled as the Steelers' top wideout after the departure of Antonio Brown.

Injuries also cost Smith-Schuster four games, and the Steelers' playoff hopes essentially ended on a fourth-down pass that went through his fingers Week 16 against the New York Jets.

Roethlisberger is expected back and healthy next season, which will create a natural uptick in Smith-Schuster's numbers, but it's fair to wonder if he's the budding superstar he appeared to be in 2017 and 2018. Defenses regularly focused their attention on Brown, allowing Smith-Schuster far more open terrain than he saw last season. Pro Football Focus graded Smith-Schuster as a mediocre 63.1 overall in 2019.

The overwhelming odds are the Steelers and Smith-Schuster will use 2020 as a redo to see where they both stand moving forward.