Pittsburgh Steelers OLB Alex Highsmith was one of the team’s stars in their Week Two win over the Cleveland Browns. He returned an interception for a touchdown on the first play of the game and then strip-sacked Deshaun Watson in the fourth quarter, which set up a T.J. Watt fumble return touchdown. NFL Media analyst Rhett Lewis was on the Move The Sticks podcast with Daniel Jeremiah and Bucky Brooks, and Lewis said that Highsmith is playing like one of the best EDGE rushers in football.
“They compensated him like one of the best EDGE rushers in football, he’s playing like one of the best EDGE rushers in football, obviously helps to have a perennial defensive player of the year candidate in T.J. Watt, but name us a better pass-rushing duo.”
Highsmith playing like one of the better edge rushers in the league isn’t anything new. He had 14.5 sacks last season, which was the sixth-best total in the NFL, and earned himself a new four-year, $68 million contract ahead of the season. He was a steal of a draft pick, being selected in the third round with the 102nd overall pick. He’s outperformed that draft slot, something Lewis mentioned as well, and he’s a key piece for the Steelers now and going forward.
There really isn’t a better pass-rushing duo in the league than Watt and Highsmith. The two of them are why Pittsburgh won last night, each scoring a defensive touchdown and also recording a sack. Both of them can change the complexion of games, as we saw last night, and they form the core of a Pittsburgh defense that can get after the passer each and every week. The Pittsburgh defense brought Watson down six times last night, and Highsmith and Watt helped will the Steelers to victory on a night when the offense was struggling.
The Steelers need Highsmith to continue to play at a high level, especially with DL Cameron Heyward out for up to the next seven weeks. He’s a big loss to the Steelers defensive line. Still, if Highsmith can elevate his game even further alongside Watt, Pittsburgh will be able to withstand the loss before getting a motivated Heyward back down the stretch.
The caveat is that Pittsburgh’s offense will have to perform as well, and thus far, they haven’t held up their end of the bargain very well. But it’s a long season and a lot can change, but hopefully, Highsmith’s performance stays the course, and he remains playing as one of the best EDGE’s in the NFL.
