At least the Pittsburgh Steelers have some budding defensive stars, like Keeanu Benton and Joey Porter Jr. Based on the way the offense has performed in the preseason, they’re going to need the defense to carry things.
Fortunately for the Steelers, at least if you listen to Max Starks, Benton is definitely a part of the solution. Coming off a promising rookie year, he is poised to take a considerable leap forward in Year 2. In last night’s preseason game, he delivered another fine performance, capped by a sack. Or rather, he shared the sack with Nick Herbig—and Larry Ogunjobi started the ruckus. But it was still a good play and merely a capstone to an overall quality effort—drawing some favorable comparisons.
“What I love about Keeanu Benton is you’ve been looking for a guy to be that nose, to be another defensive lineman to go opposite Larry Ogunjobi and Cam Heyward”, Starks said on the KDKA Extra Point show after last night’s Steelers loss. “You were looking to fill a role of a Stephon Tuitt on this defensive line, and I think you found someone in the young Badger in Keeanu Benton”.
Keeanu Benton is the first defensive lineman the Steelers drafted as early as the second round since Stephon Tuitt. Playing nose tackle primarily, Benton looked dominant at times in 2023 but struggled to finish plays. And Starks isn’t the first person to compare the two, not even the first this year.
Tuitt often looked exactly the same way—dominant but not always quite a finisher. He would, however, wreak havoc that allowed others to make plays, as Benton did last year. Tuitt ultimately played seven seasons, recording 246 tackles, 34.5 sacks, 6 forced fumbles, and an interception. Following his brother’s tragic death by a hit-and-run driver in 2021, however, he never played again, retiring a year later.
And yet he had arguably his best season in 2020, posting a career-high 11 sacks and 10 tackles for loss. Like Cameron Heyward, he looked like he was taking his game to another level during his second act. Keeanu Benton is not a perfect parallel because he plays more inside, but he has similar talent.
“Not only can he stop in the run game, but he can create his pass rush”, Starks said of Benton. “I love seeing the different ways that he does it. He can push the pocket. He can also knife and get thin and get up the field”.
Speaking of Heyward, while he says he wants to play three more seasons, he has to prove he can play one more. Larry Ogunjobi is also a free agent after this season and won’t return unless he signs for cheap. Either that or he needs to have a breakout season. But Benton seems poised to take over as the most dominant defensive lineman on this team—they need him to.
Benton only recorded one sack during his rookie season, which came early in the year. It seemed, however, that he came close to another on a weekly basis, having no trouble finding the backfield. Isolating on his individual work, you can see the ease with which he can beat a block. Now it’s about finishing the plays himself.
