Pittsburgh Steelers DL DeMarvin Leal has largely been a disappointment through his first two years with the Steelers. Despite showing flashes as a rookie, he reportedly showed up to camp out of shape last season and was a gameday inactive for the final five games of the regular season and the wild card round of the playoffs. Entering Year 3, there’s a real chance that Leal doesn’t make the 53-man roster, but in an interview with Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, he detailed that he thinks he’ll be ready in Year 3, and that he’s under the team’s target weight for him.
Leal told Fittipaldo he’s currently at 288 pounds, but the Steelers want him to be 290-295 by September, and ideally for Leal, he gets to that weight sooner rather than later to increase his chances of making the team. Leal knows that he has to put it together this season, and he thinks he’s going to be ready.
“It’s Year 3,” Leal told Fittipaldo. “It’s time. I’ve been in this defense for three years now. I know the defense. This offseason has been about straight technique. I’m working on my technique and my body. I feel like there’s a good chance it’s going to happen this year.”
Working on his body is going to continue to be important. Leal played some outside linebacker as a rookie due to injuries in addition to working along the line. That didn’t help set him up for long-term success at either position. Despite earning four starts, mostly due to injuries, along the defensive line in 2023, Leal struggled and fell out of favor, leading to him being a healthy scratch at the end of the season.
Pittsburgh added Dean Lowry and Logan Lee to its defensive line room this offseason, and Leal’s spot on the roster is tenuous at best if he doesn’t show up this offseason. But it sounds as if he’s motivated to prove that he deserves to make the team and play this season, and he’s keenly aware of where he stands when it comes to the defensive line room.
He needs to bulk up and soon to be able to do what’s asked of him on the defensive line. If he can do so while continuing to improve his technique and his strength, then Leal could wind up being a rotational piece on the defensive line this year. It’s far from guaranteed and he’s going to have to prove that he’s a better player and more motivated than he was last season, but 2024 could finally be the year the Steelers get a return on their investment from their 2022 third-round pick.
