Two preseason games, 2.5 sacks, a forced fumble and a ton of headlines generated for Pittsburgh Steelers rookie outside linebacker Nick Herbig.
It’s still early, but the Wisconsin product certainly looks the part on the field in the Black and Gold.
In the two preseason wins over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Buffalo Bills, Herbig has been the Steelers’ best player. The snap numbers aren’t all that high — just 40 total snaps in two games — but he’s making the most of his time on the field and is forcing his way into being a true rotational piece for the Steelers.
His play is drawing the attention of veteran cornerback Patrick Peterson, too.
One week after Peterson praised the fourth-round pick for his dominance in just 13 snaps against the Buccaneers, Peterson had more praise for the lightning-quick pass rusher on the latest episode of his podcast “All Things Covered” with co-host and cousin Bryant McFadden, a former Steelers cornerback, Wednesday.
“Man, Nick goes crazy when he gets on the grass, I tell you that much,” Peterson said to McFadden highlighting the young pass rusher, according to video via the All Things Covered YouTube page. “I was able to see it throughout the spring and I remember thinking I wanted to see what this thing looks like when he’s got the pads on.
“Nothing changed. I’m happy to see his growth as well, because if you look at it, he really only played less than 40 snaps in two games and the production that he has is unbelievable.”
The production has been rather remarkable from Herbig.
Of those 40 snaps, 25 have come as a pass rusher. In those 25 pass rush snaps, according to Pro Football Focus, Herbig has four total pressures, 2.5 sacks, a forced fumble and graded out at a 77.3 overall as a pass rusher, including a 90.6 overall defensively.
Against Tampa Bay, Herbig showed great burst off the ball to run the arc and sack Kyle Trask before later showing a tremendous inside counter to win against Tampa Bay’s starting right tackle in Luke Goedeke.
In the win over the Bills last Saturday at Acrisure Stadium, Herbig was absurd. That great get-off was present again as he knifed home for a tackle for loss against the run, slipping under the tight end’s block.
There was also the pressure generated early against Buffalo left tackle Dion Dawkins that forced a Josh Allen incompletion, and then he capped it all off with an incredible pass rush against David Quessenberry, chopping and dipping under Quessenberry with tremendous athleticism and ankle flexion, stripping Matt Barkley of the ball in the process, leading to a turnover.
The athleticism and overall advanced pass rush skills are rather eye-opening right now with Herbig. Though there are some concerns about his ability to hold up against the run against bigger, stronger linemen, Herbig absolutely looks the part as a pass rusher.
He’s becoming a must-watch when he hits the field. Teammates are taking notice, too.
