Today I wanted to look at defensive line prospects in the upcoming draft, a position that the Pittsburgh Steelers are currently thin at on the depth chart. The graph below uses their 2022 PFF Grade and their current rank on PFF’s Big Board that updates through the draft process:
The top overall player on PFF’s current board at the position is highly touted prospect Jalen Carter at two overall. He played nearly 400 snaps in each of the last two seasons after landing just shy of 300 in 2020, playing the B gap mostly along with experience across the line, with 100+ over the tackle and A gap snaps the last three seasons. Last year, Carter had 90+ overall, run defense, and true pass set grades, a high 80 pass rush grade, along with great rates in pass rush win rate (16.3%) and run stop win rate (15.3%). His highest sack total came in 2021 (four) following that up with three sack year, and had 24 hurries in each of those seasons, compared to two sacks and nine hurries in 2020.
Pittsburgh’s Calijah Kancey saw the most snaps the last three years in 2021 (577), compared to 450+ last season and just shy of 400 in 2020 playing primarily in the B gap and also spent considerable time in the A gap, particularly from 2020-2021 along with a bit of experience across the line. Kancey had a 90+ overall and pass rush in 2022, 80+ run defense, and true pass set grades, along with a stellar 22.7% pass rush win rate and good 7.4% run stop win rate. His highest sack season was 2021 (nine) compared to eight last year when he noticeably increased his hurries to 30 compared to 19 and 15 previously. He has tweener size for Pittsburgh’s liking at the position though.
Clemson’s Bryan Bresee had the most snaps the last three seasons in 2020 (430), compared to just over 150 in 2021 and 330 last year, playing mostly in the B gap with a bit of experience across the line, most notably in the A gap, especially in 2020. He had a 70+ overall and true pass set grade, 80+ pass rush grade, but 60+ run defense grade, along with a solid 14.5% pass rush win rate but below average 4.8% run stop rate. Bresee provided four sacks and 16 hurries in 2020 when he had the most opportunity, compared to three sacks and 17 hurries last season, upping the latter on 100 less snaps.
The first player that would start day two of the draft on PFF’s current board is Michigan’s Mazi Smith. His workload increased the last three seasons, playing minimally in 2020, then had 544 snaps the following year before having 632 in 2022 primarily playing the B gap, along with 150+ in the A gap the last two seasons, and a bit of time over the tackle last year. Smith had a high 70 overall grade, 80+ run defense grade, 70+ true pass set grade, and high-60 pass rush grade, along with a good 11.4% pass rush rate and great 11.6% run stop rate. He had one sack each of the last two seasons, and upped his hurry production from 14 to 19.
USC’s Tuli Tuipulotu saw an increased workload each of the last three years, with just over 200 snaps in 2020, followed by 600+ and 733 in 2022. He played outside the tackle primarily, particularly the last two seasons, but also has experience over the tackle and a bit of experience across the line. Listed at 290 pounds, this suggests a defensive line role in my opinion as opposed to edge if Pittsburgh were interested given their draft history. Tuipulotu had 80+ overall and pass rush grades, 70+ run defense, and true pass set grades, along with a great 19.1% pass rush win rate and below average 5.3% run stop rate. He had 13 sacks and 37 hurries last season, by far his best production compared to six sacks and 17 hurries in 2021.
A player that has impressed me in my studies is Bowling Green’s Karl Brooks, who saw an increased snap count each season (129, 555, 670), similarly playing outside and over the tackle primarily, with a bit of B gap experience as well. He had the highest overall grade of the group (93) with strong 90+ pass rush, run defense, and true pass set grades along with an excellent 23.8% pass rush win rate and great 9.1% run stop rate. Brooks had 12 sacks and a whopping 49 hurries last year, and eight sacks and 25 hurries in 2021. He weighed in at 300 pounds at the Senior Bowl and played on the inside of the line, providing a sack (the quarterback did hang onto the ball though), along with another strong pass rush, and a nice run tackle as well that provided optimism for the position move in my opinion.
Siaki Ika from Baylor had 500+ snaps in 2021 compared to 415 last season after playing minimally in 2020. He had the most snaps in the B gap overall where he played most last season, and provided notable snaps in the A gap the last two seasons at 135 and 240 in 2021. He had 70+ overall and pass rush grades, a high 60 run defense grade, and 60+ true pass set grade, a good 12.2% pass rush win rate and above average 6.6% run stop win rate. Ika’s strongest production came in 2021 when he had the most snaps, with six sacks and 24 hurries, compared to no sacks and 15 hurries last year.
Wisconsin’s Keeanu Benton had the most snaps in 2021 (472) along with 400+ last season, and 150+ in 2020. He had a 70+ overall grade, 80+ pass rush, and true pass set grades, and a 60+ run defense grade, along with a good 13.3% pass rush win rate and great 10.5% run stop win rate. He had his highest sack total of six last season along with 11 hurries, compared to two sacks and 12 hurries in 2021 on a bit more opportunity. Benton has become a favorite of many on the Steelers Depot team, with our own Alex Kozora first on the scene, and Jonathan Heitritter enjoying his athleticism/size combo with good get off and hand use on the Senior Bowl roundtable podcast. In the game he made my notes mostly in a positive light, including two pass rush wins with quarterback hits, a play with good push in the run game, pursuing a toss for a run tackle (Pittsburgh’s gotta love that). Also had a couple negative plays though, one on a pass rush where he was blocked to the ground and another being pushed back in the run game.
Moro Ojomo out of Texas had the most snaps in 2021 (431) playing the B gap most along with 100+ snaps over the tackle, provided 400+ snaps in 2020 as well when he played predominately outside the tackle, and had the least amount of opportunity last season with 376 when he once again played mostly in the B gap. Last year he had 90+ overall and run defense grades, an 80+ pass rush grade, and a high 70 true pass set grade, along with a great 17.8% pass rush win rate and good 7.9% run stop rate. Ojomo had his highest stat lines last season on his fewest opportunities, providing five sacks and 20 hurries, compared to no sacks and 10 hurries the previous year and two sacks and 19 hurries in 2020. He was at the Shrine Bowl and some scouts noted a good practice week, but is a questionable fit for Pittsburgh with tweener size.
LSU’s Jaquelin Roy had increased opportunities the last three seasons with over 650 snaps last year, nearly 500 in 2021, and 250+ in 2020. He played mostly in the B gap and also provided 250+ A gap snaps last year, and played a bit over tackle as well. In 2022, Roy had 70+ overall, pass rush, and true pass set grades, and a high 60 run defense grade, and had above average rates in pass rush wins (10.1%) and run stops (7.2%). He had two sacks in each of the last two seasons, with his highest hurries coming in 2021 (22) compared to 17 previously and 20 last year.
Now for players outside PFF’s top 100, starting with Wake Forest’s Kobie Turner. He had the most snaps in 2021 (615) compared to 500+ last season, and just shy of 200 in 2020, playing the B gap mostly and branching out to 100+ in the A gap and a bit of time over tackle last year. In 2022 he had 90+ overall and run defense grades, a high 80 pass rush grade, and 70+ true pass set grade, along with great rates in pass rush win rate (14.7%) and run stops (11.5%). Turner’s highest sack total came in 2021 (five) when he had the most snaps, and noticeably improved his hurry numbers each year (12, 20, 27). He had a half sack in the Shrine Bowl, but made my notes from the game with a poor run angle as well.
Gervon Dexter out of Florida saw increased opportunities each of the last three season, with 250+ in 2020, 450+ the following year, and 682 in 2022. He played the B gap the most, also providing 150+ in the A gap in 2021 and 100+ over tackle last season. He had a 60+ overall grade, 70 run defense grade, but a high 50 true pass set grade, and a mid 50 pass rush grade, along with an above average 8.5% pass rush win rate and good 7.7% run stop rate. Dexter’s had four sacks in 2021 compared to two last year, increasing his hurries each season (three, 12, 20).
Western Kentucky’s Brodric Martin also saw increased opportunities each year in snaps (176, 369, and 532), playing slightly more in the A gap particularly last season, after spending more time in the B gap the prior two campaigns. In 2022 he had 70+ overall, pass rush, and true pass set grades, and a high 60 run defense grade, along with an above-average 9.4% pass rush win rate and below-average 4.7% run stop rate. Martin had his best production last season with two sacks and 19 hurries, compared to one sack and seven hurries on less opportunity in 2021. He was at the Shrine Bowl, with our own Josh Carney stating on the roundtable podcast that he started the practice week slow but came on strong, showcasing a nice rip move as an example. He had a fumble recovery in the game and made my game notes positively with a run tackle.
Keondre Coburn out of Texas had nearly 400 snaps in 2020 and 2021, eclipsing this number with 413 last season. He played the B gap primarily in 2020, then 200+ plus in the A gap along with 150+ in the B gap in 2021, and 250+ B gap and 129 A gap opportunities in 2022. He had high 70 overall and pass rush grades, an 80+ true pass set grade, and 70+ run defense grade, along with a great 15.4% pass rush win rate and above-average run stop rate. Coburn had his best production by far last year on similar snap opportunities, with four sacks and 24 hurries, compared to two sacks and 10 hurries in the prior two seasons combined. Carney noted him from his Shrine Bowl scouting with great size and pass-rush ability, along with power to eat up blockers.
South Carolina’s Zacch Pickens had increased snaps each of the last three seasons (445, 562, 605) and mostly played the B gap, with a bit of experience in the A gap each year. In 2022 he had a high 60 overall and true pass set grade, a 70+ pass rush grade, but low 60 run defense grade along with a good 11.5% pass rush win rate and above average 6.2% run stop rate. Pickens highest sack total came in 2021 with five compared to three last year, and provided an increase in hurries each season (five, eight, 13). He had a good week at the Senior Bowl as a practice player of the week, and impressing many on our staff in attendance, with our own Ross McCorkle noting that coach Mike Tomlin had his eye on him, Heitritter liking him as a nose tackle in the middle of the draft, and Kozora pointing him out early in the process as well.
Byron Young out of Alabama also increased his snaps each season, with nearly 300 in 2020, just shy of 400 in 2021, and 548 last year, providing great alignment versatility with over 100 snaps the last two seasons in the B gap, over tackle, and outside the tackle, and eclipsing 200 in the B gap in 2022. He had a high 70 overall grade, 70+ pass rush and run defense grades, and an 80+ true pass set grade, along with a good 12.5% pass rush win rate and above-average run stop rate. Young’s sacks doubled each year (4, 2, 1) as his workload increased, also more than doubling his hurries last season from seven to 15. This is another player that impressed per the Senior Bowl podcast, with our own Dave Bryan liking him as a three-technique, and Heitritter seeing him as a 3/4 DT/DE that eats blocks but lacked production. He made my game notes several times, mostly positive including a few strong pass rushes highlighted by a bull, a nice run tackle, but was walled off on the two-point conversion.
Next, I would like to highlight some other players that are day three options on PFF’s current big board that had strong grades. San Diego’s Jonah Tavai had 700+ snaps in each of the last two years after having 356 in 2020, playing the A gap the most overall particularly in 2021 with his second most snaps coming in the B gap (100+ each season), and showed more position versatility in 2022 with 150+ snaps at all four spots on the line. He had 90+ overall, pass rush, and true pass set grades, a high 80 run defense grade, along with an excellent 22.4% pass rush win rate and good 8.2% run stop rate. Tavai had nice production with double-digit sacks and 40+ pressures the last two seasons, increasing both on slightly less snaps.
Chattanooga’s Devonnsha Maxwell had 600+ snaps in each of the last two seasons and 200+ in 2020, playing predominately in the B gap. He had a 90 overall grade, high 80 run defense grade, 80+ pass rush grade, and 70+ true pass set grade, along with good rates in pass rush wins (11.7%) and run stop wins (8.6%). Maxwell’s best production came in 2021 with 14 sacks and 20 hurries, compared to nine sacks and 16 hurries last year. He made my Shrine Bowl game notes positively with a run tackle, a nice bull, and getting instant penetration on a pass rush as well.
West Virginia’s Dante Stills had 500+ snaps in each of the last three years, with the most coming in 2021 (645) and was just shy of 600 last season. He mostly played in the B gap and also had over 250 over-the-tackle opportunities the last two years, along with 100+ outside-the-tackle opportunities in 2022. Stills had an 80+ overall grade, 90+ run defense grade, and 70+ pass rush and true pass set grades, along with a good 14.2% pass rush win rate but below average run stop rate. His highest sack season came in 2021 with eight and had 14 hurries, compared to five sacks and increased his hurries each year with 21 in his final campaign. Carney mentioned his freaky athleticism but trying too hard at times in Shrine Bowl practices, and he made my game notes positively with a tackle for loss/forced fumble along with an instant penetration pass rush.
Now for some more late-round prospects on PFF’s current big board, and I will discuss some of them. Coastal Carolina’s Jerrod Clark had 525 snaps last season, increasing his workload from around 400 in each of the prior two years, playing most in the A gap and quite a bit of time in the B gap, where he had the most snaps (293) in 2022. He had a high 70 overall grade, 70+ pass rush and run defense grades, and an 80+ true pass set grade along with good rates in pass rush wins (12.9%) and run stops (8%). Clark’s best production came last year with four sacks and 22 hurries, compared to three sacks and seven hurries where he made a big improvement, along with three sacks and five hurries in 2020. He made my Senior Bowl game notes with a couple of run tackles, but one came on a conversion for the offense.
Oklahoma’s Jalen Redmond did not play in 2020, following this up with 300+ the following season and had 430 snaps in 2022, mainly playing the B gap and also providing 141 A gap snaps last year. He had a high 60 overall grade, 70+ run defense grade, 60+ pass rush grade, but a high 50 true pass set grade, along with an above-average 9.7% pass rush win rate and good 8.4% run stop win rate. Redmond had four sacks and 18 hurries last season, compared to three sacks and a matching hurry total, unable to provide much of a statistical jump last season on more opportunity. He made my game notes more in a negative fashion, getting washed out in run defense on a few occasions, most notably on the goal line resulting in a touchdown, but did make a run tackle as well.
Tyler Lacy of Oklahoma State played the most snaps in 2021 (636) and had 450+ in 2020 and last year. The first two seasons, he played predominately outside the tackle along with 100+ over the tackle snaps, and in 2022 had slightly more B gap snaps than outside the tackle. He had 80+ overall and run defense grades, and upper 60 pass rush and true pass set grades, along with being slightly below average in pass rush wins (11.9%) and run stops (5.7%). Lacy had three sacks in each of the last two years, with his highest mark coming in 2020 at four, and provided the most hurries in 2021 (24), posting his lowest number last season with only nine. He made my Senior Bowl game notes with a run tackle, but more notably had a missed tackle on a reception.
DJ Dale of Alabama had 350+ snaps each of the last three seasons, playing 200+ in the B gap and 100+ in the A gap every year. In 2022, he had an 80+ overall grade, a 90+ true pass set grade, an upper 70 pass rush grade, and 70+ run defense grade, along with a good 11.3% pass rush rate but below average 4.8% run stop rate. Dale’s best production came last year with three sacks and ten hurries, compared to two sacks and six hurries in the previous two seasons combined. He had a tackle for loss in the run game in the Senior Bowl, but also was washed out on another run play.
Florida State’s Fabien Lovett had the most snaps in 2021 (489) compared to only 210 last year and 250+ in 2020, playing in the B gap the most by far. He had 70+ overall and run defense grades, a 60+ pass rush grade, but poor 50+ true pass set grade, along with an above-average 9.1% pass rush win rate and poor 3.2% run stop rate. Lovett’s best production came in 2021 as expected with more opportunity, with two sacks and 14 hurries, and had no sacks and six hurries in 2022 on his least amount of snaps.
Cameron Young of Mississippi State saw a snap increase each season from 145, 436, to nearly 600 in 2022, playing slightly more A gap snaps overall (particularly the last two years) and saw a big increase in B gap snaps each season, playing the most there at 300+ snaps in 2022. He had a 60+ overall grade, upper 60 run defense grade, but an upper 50 pass-rush grade and 50+ true pass set grade, along with below average rates in pass-rush wins (6.7%) and run stops (4.9%). Young only had one sack in 2020 and last season, but did improve his hurry numbers each year (3, 12, 16).
Ohio State’s Taron Vincent saw an increased snap count each of the last three years (158, 370, 489) and played mostly in the B gap. He had a 60+ overall grade, upper 60 run defense grade, but 50+ pass rush and true pass set grades, along with below average rates in pass rush wins (5.9%) and run stops (4.3%). Vincent’s only sacks came last year with two, and improved his hurry numbers each season (12, 6, 4). Carney was underwhelmed by him in his Shrine Bowl scouting, stating he was disappointed overall mainly due to injury and his bloodlines.
The final player on PFF’s current big board is Nesta Jade Silvera of Arizona State (279). He had 400+ snaps each season, capping his opportunities off with a notable jump to 572 in 2022, and predominately played the B gap. He had a high 60 overall grade, 60+ pass rush and true pass set grade, 70+ run defense grade along with a slightly above average 8.4% pass rush win rate and good 7.5% run stop win rate. Silvera had two sacks last season, his most in a season with the same tally the two years prior, and had the most hurries in 2021 (14 last season, 17, and 12).
There were a couple of names that were left off of PFF’s current draft board I wanted to mention. Most notably in my opinion is Penn State’s P.J. Mustipher, who Carney projects in the fifth-sixth round liking his leadership as a captain, physicality, and size, along with our own Melanie Friedlander loving his fit as a potential Steeler, and made my Shrine Bowl game notes getting penetration on a few plays off the snap. Carney was also impressed with Arkansas’ Terry Hampton with some solid wins against offensive lineman Ricky Stromberg in Shrine Bowl practices.
There is no doubt a need at the position, and hopefully, Pittsburgh takes advantage with a selection in the 2023 draft. While the ranks on PFF’s board will certainly change, and surely some names missing from this list, I hope you enjoyed and learned something from the grade data and notes from the all-star games.
What are your thoughts on this year’s prospects and the data? Thanks for reading and let me know your thoughts in the comments.
