MT really liked Ayers and IMO he belongs on a 53 as a backup slot WR and possible PR. TBH in most years Ayers would have made Pitt's 53; he just got caught up in a numbers game at a very deep Steelers position.
He has professional-level quickness and improving hands. He is limited IMO to slot and PR (not KR) duties because he lacks long speed; if he makes it as your PR he is more likely to 'break' a 15- to 25- yard run and get caught than take it to the house. He is not going to take the top off of coverage, so he's unlikely to get any snaps outside. But his physical makeup seems tailor-made to a system like New England's that emphasizes quick separation in a short passing game.
A significant but largely overlooked issue with the Steelers last year was their WR depth beyond Brown and Eli Rogers in the slot. There's been a complete overhaul of that part of the roster: Wheaton (injured), Coates (traded), Hamilton (outright cut) and Ayers (cut/PS offered) have all been discarded, with Bryant, Smith-Schuster and Justin Hunter taking their places. There was just no room at the slot with Rogers and now Smith-Schuster (who is more versatile in that he can also play outside), and Pitt's philosphy (vertical) places a premium on gazelles who can run and jump, rather than short-area 'quicks' guys. On a team with a different philosophy, maybe Ayers beats out Hunter for the WR5 spot.
Personally I wish Ayers had stuck around; if ever there was a year for Pitt to keep 7 WRs, this was it, as there were arguably 9 or 10 guys who should be on game day rosters. At a minimum, Ayers could have solved our perennial problem of getting AB off of PR duties.
