One motto that is often shared among teams in the NFL: You can never have too many pass rushers.
If you look across the league, you will see that the teams that are contending for championships on a yearly basis often have the best pass-rushing units in football. The Philadelphia Eagles had one of the best defensive lines in football last season, rolling with Haason Reddick, Josh Sweat, and Brandon Graham on the outside along with a host of options to choose from on the interior. The Buffalo Bills are notably stacked up front, having the likes of Von Miller, Leonard Floyd, Gregory Rousseau, Carlos Basham, and A.J. Epenesa on the edge. The Miami Dolphins also have built up quite the edge rusher room, having Bradley Chubb, Jaelan Phillips, Emmanuel Ogbah, and Andrew Van Ginkel as all quality starting options.
I wrote previously about how the Pittsburgh Steelers as starting to mimic the Eagles in terms of prioritizing depth along the defensive front, using free agency and the draft to solidify the EDGE and IDL rooms behind the projected starters to protect themselves should someone go down to injury as well as allow for the starters to come out more in the rotation, keeping guys fresh. The Steelers have done a good job of adding options to both rooms this offseason, drafting DL Keeanu Benton and OLB Nick Herbig while going out and signing EDGE Markus Golden as well as DL Armon Watts and Breiden Fehoko.
While Golden should step in as a reliable OLB3 behind T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith for the Steelers this season, I would still encourage Pittsburgh to go out and sign another veteran pass rusher for 2023 to put that room over the top.
To compete with the best, you’ve got to beat the best. Meaning? Pittsburgh needs to continue to build up its defense to match and exceed the defensive units they will face on a regular basis in the AFC. As mentioned above, the Bills, Dolphins, and plenty of other squads run 4-5 deep in viable edge rushers, meaning that adding another proven veteran shouldn’t be off the table for Pittsburgh and honestly should be something they should investigate prior to the start of the season.
As far as options go, there are several notable names currently out there that are looking for jobs. Older veterans like Robert Quinn, Justin Houston, Carlos Dunlap, and Jason Pierre-Paul all remain unsigned and are looking to play for playoff contenders. While these options are past their respective primes, all four of these guys have produced at a Pro Bowl level during their careers and have shown that they still have gas left in the tank to play 15-20 snaps a game in a rotational role. None of these guys should break the bank and could round out an experienced, productive OLB room with Watt, Highsmith, and Golden already in tow.
Other less likely names that also are out on the market include Yannick Ngakoue who is more of a pure pass rusher and is likely looking for a starting spot. Dawuane Smoot has been productive for the Jaguars the last couple of seasons and would provide Pittsburgh a capable run defender as well as an established rotational pass rusher. Al-Quadin Muhammad fits the mold of a Steelers OLB and has been productive in a rotational role. Former first-round pick Takk McKinley was recently released by the Dallas Cowboys and would make for another good reclamation project as a rotational player with pedigree in Pittsburgh.
The status of Nick Herbig and his positional fit in the league also should motivate Pittsburgh to sign another edge rusher. While the team intends to try Herbig at OLB first to start his career, they have mentioned kicking him inside to off-ball LB to see how he would look there. Given his athleticism as well as his measurables, perhaps moving primarily to off-ball LB for Herbig could be a wise move, much like Pittsburgh did with Lawrence Timmons back when they drafted him out of Florida St. where he played as an OLB but moved him inside to play in the league where he had a productive career.
Signing another veteran edge rusher could be seen as a luxury compared to signing another slot CB or a backup C, but the need to put pressure on opposing QBs is more important than ever in today’s high-flying passing league. Pittsburgh has great options in their starting lineup but would do best by adding quality rotational options behind them, having the depth and talent to send wave after wave of pass rushers at opposing offenses, much like the Eagles did last season. For a team that’s prided itself on leading the league in sacks for multiple seasons, adding more pass-rush juice to the arsenal could only help this team’s chances at competing in a stacked AFC in 2023.
