Will DL DeMarvin Leal finally have his breakout season?
The Pittsburgh Steelers have taken a swing in the trenches once a year for several years now—and most years. At defensive end, though, DeMarvin Leal is the biggest swing they’ve taken recently since Stephon Tuitt in 2014.
The Steelers invested a third-round draft pick in Leal in 2022, but his first two seasons have been disappointing. He has yet to evidence the development necessary, and his roster spot is now in jeopardy. But realistically, he can land anywhere from a key rotational player to off the roster entirely.
Leal is an athlete, but perhaps he has struggled to be a professional. Some beat writers, particularly Ray Fittipaldo, have talked about his lack of conditioning over his first two seasons. The reports from OTAs so far this year have been far more positive, however.
So that leads us to the question of the day: is 2024 finally the year that DeMarvin Leal breaks out? Understand that in the context of a backup defensive lineman, a breakout season simply looks like a regular rotational role and a handful of plays made.
In each of his first two seasons, Leal played roughly 25 percent of the snaps in games in which he played. He barely cracked 200 snaps in 2024, which is concerning, given that only a few dozen of them came in the second half of the year.
The reality is that he spent most of that time on the bench as a healthy scratch. Leal played early on in the year during Cameron Heyward’s recovery from injury, but he disappeared when Heyward returned. Isaiahh Loudermilk took his place, as did Armon Watts.
This year, Leal is arguably competing with Loudermilk and rookie Logan Lee for one roster spot. The Steelers already have Heyward, Larry Ogunjobi, Keeanu Benton, Dean Lowry, and Montravius Adams up front. If they only keep six defensive linemen, which is extremely common, then there is only one spot left. He has the highest potential of the group, but he hasn’t yet lived up to it.
The Steelers’ 2023 season has been put out of its misery, ending as so many have before in recent years: a disappointing, blowout playoff loss. The only change-up lately is when they miss the playoffs altogether. But with the Buffalo Bills stamping them out in the Wildcard Round, they have another long offseason ahead.
The biggest question hanging over the team is the quarterback question. Does Russell Wilson make them a Super Bowl-caliber team, or are they wasting a year? Will he play just one season in Pittsburgh before moving on, or the Steelers moving on from him? How will the team address the depth chart?
The Steelers are past free agency and the draft and their roster for the 2024 season is coming into focus. They made numerous moves through signings and trade—and release. More than usual, they seemed comfortable creating holes, confident they can fill them. Now that we have so many pieces of the puzzle, however, we merely have a new set of questions to ask.
