Motion creates emotion. That was the tag line of Ben Affleck’s shady Wall Street character in the cult classic Boiler Room. Nothing shady happened on the football field Saturday night in Acrisure Stadium but young guys like Nick Herbig and Joey Porter Jr. were flying around the field, stirring up a bunch of positive emotion along the way.
Each had solid outings in Saturday’s 27-15 win over the Bills. Herbig’s solid preseason continues, forcing a fumble recovered by Pittsburgh tonight. And Porter notched his first interception, a comparatively less gaudy play but still a turnover for the Steelers defense. Speaking to reporters following the win, head coach Mike Tomlin praised not just the play but the mentality of those young players and the team’s rookie class.
“They’re playing with energy and emotion,” Tomlin said via the team’s YouTube channel. “And I know it seems like nothing, but when you’re a young guy and you lack experience and you’re worried about assignments and environmental things, it is a tough task to play with energy and emotion. And I see a lot of our young guys doing that.”
The assignments don’t seem too big to this current group. Broderick Jones looked fine at left tackle, though he’s still running second-team behind Dan Moore Jr. Porter had plenty of emotion after his interception, celebrating with teammates and his father. NT Keeanu Benton was held out due to an ankle injury and TE Darnell Washington didn’t have an obvious impact but seemed to hold his own. Herbig is a high-octane player fighting for serious rotational snaps behind T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith while Spencer Anderson has played every offensive line position except for left tackle in his first two preseason games.
Also speaking after the game, T.J. Watt sang Herbig’s praises.
“I think he’s done a lot of good things,” he said, also via the team’s YouTube channel. “Credit to himself for just being a student of the game and continuing to evolve as a pass rusher and in the run game.”
Herbig didn’t just make a play off the edge. He also had a tackle in the backfield, chasing from the backside just like Watt does. Herbig has spent this summer picking Watt’s brain at every opportunity and it’s gotten to the point where players like Alex Highsmith are learning from Herbig. This isn’t student surpassing the master but it’s a testament to Herbig’s instant impact.
Overall, it’s been an impressive rookie class. And Pittsburgh needs it to continue. Porter should be a sub-package player, coming onto the field in nickel and dime packages. Benton is fighting to be the starting nose tackle, though sitting out tonight obviously hurts his cause. Washington has done enough to be the team’s No. 2 tight end while Herbig could become the No. 3 outside linebacker. And Anderson is a solid bet to make the 53 as one of the Steelers’ final linemen.
