The Pittsburgh Steelers love their football bloodlines. And they could go back to that well in the 2024 NFL Draft. According to our Jonathan Heitritter, who is at this year’s NFL Scouting Combine, the Steelers held a formal interview with Clemson LB Jeremiah Trotter Jr. in Indianapolis.
He’s the son of former NFL linebacker Jeremiah Trotter.
Trotter is considered one of the top off-ball linebackers in this year’s draft, though his stock is slightly cooler than anticipated compared to one year ago. Over his last two years with the Tigers, Trotter racked up 177 tackles (28.5 for a loss) with 12 sacks, four interceptions, and three forced fumbles, strong production across the board.
Speaking to the media, Trotter confirmed his meeting with Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin.
“Mike Tomlin’s a great coach,” he said. “He’s been doing it many years. A lot of experience. The whole feel of the organization is just great. Those guys really showed energy and showed me love and I appreciate that.
“I feel like he really commanded the room. He had a strong presence to him. He’s a great coach…I love the way he coaches. I love the way he leads it. His team. You just have a lot of respect for him.”
In our pre-draft scouting report of Jeremiah Trotter, Heitritter concluded the following about his game:
“Jeremiah Trotter Jr. is a well-rounded linebacker prospect who can run, hit, and cover at a high level. He is on the shorter side of things and lacks ideal length and size, which could present issues at the next level in terms of fighting through blockers. He will have to prove that these physical limitations won’t hinder him at the next level as he faces bigger, stronger, and faster competition as well as clean up his tackling to be more of a sure player in that facet of his game to become a full-time starter and display his playmaking abilities as a sideline-to-sideline defender that can also blitz and drop into coverage effectively.”
Heitritter projected him to be drafted on Day 2, likely somewhere in the second round. Pittsburgh is still searching for a long-term option at inside linebacker but with a healthy Cole Holcomb and Elandon Roberts, along with Mark Robinson going into his third season, the team might not prioritize the position high in the draft.
Trotter’s father, Jeremiah Sr., was a four-time Pro Bowler, playing in the league from 1998 to 2009, spending most of that time with the cross-state Philadelphia Eagles. Pittsburgh has a history of using high draft picks on prospects with strong football bloodlines. Cam Heyward, Terrell Edmunds, T.J. Watt, and Devin Bush are just some of the notable and recent examples.
For the younger Trotter, he didn’t feel the pressure of living up to his dad’s name.
“I never really thought I was in the shadow. I never really thought there was a pressure on me to make it. He was very supportive of me. He always told me and my brother as well, he plays football. He told us both, if we weren’t playing football, he’d still love us the same. He’s a great dad, a great father, and I really appreciate him.”
Trotter is the second formal meeting we know the Steelers have had, joining Kansas EDGE Austin Booker. We’ll soon post an updated Combine tracker to monitor throughout the week. Read our full scouting report on Trotter below.
