Now that the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 2023 season is getting underway after the team finished above .500 but failing to make the postseason last year, we turn our attention to the next chapter of Steelers football and everything that entails. One thing that it means is that some stock evaluations are going to start taking on more specific contexts as we get into the season, reflecting more immediate plusses and minus rather than trends over long periods. The nature of the evaluation, whether short-term or long-term, will be noted in the reasoning section below.
Player: OLB Nick Herbig
Stock Value: Up
Reasoning: With T.J. Watt unavailable for today’s game against the Buffalo Bills, the rookie edge rusher will likely play a significant role. He and Markus Golden will be responsible for filling in for the should-be Defensive Player of the Year for the Steelers in the Wild Card Round game.
The Pittsburgh Steelers’ rookie draft class has been a positive force throughout the season, churning out four starters in T Broderick Jones, CB Joey Porter Jr., NT Keeanu Benton, and TE Darnell Washington. Fourth-round OLB Nick Herbig has been a significant contributor as well, consistently on special teams and sporadically on defense when given the opportunity.
The Steelers have no choice but to afford him that opportunity today without T.J. Watt, who has long been ruled out for their wild-card game against the Buffalo Bills. While Markus Golden, the longtime veteran and a former starter, should see the bulk of the reps in his stead, Herbig will also have to shoulder the load.
And he will have to do so on both sides since Alex Highsmith is going to need a breath every now and then. Pittsburgh did not rely heavily on its quality depth at the position, but Herbig and Golden still combined for seven sacks on the year on a little over 400 total defensive snaps. That’s very good production, which the Steelers haven’t had in a while.
There is no questioning Herbig’s effectiveness when he has played the year. While he came out of Wisconsin with some concerns about his size—which is why he was available in the fourth round in the first place—the only real question is how many snaps he can play while still being effective.
He hasn’t gotten the chance to try to answer that question much. His only extensive playing time came in a game against the New England Patriots, during which both Watt and Highsmith suffered concussions. He played 45 snaps and registered seven tackles, including a tackle for loss, though he didn’t manage a sack.
It was the only game all season in which he played even 20 defensive snaps, and one of only four in which he played even 15. He should certainly see more than 15 today if the Steelers have to line up on defense for any length of time. And given his Badger roots, he should have some familiarity with playing in inclement weather.
