Several Pittsburgh Steelers legends have made appearances at training camp this year, but none may be harder to miss than James Harrison. While retired for years, Harrison is still a most imposing figure when he steps onto the field. He didn’t visit the team just to be a spectator though. He made sure to work with young pass rusher Nick Herbig while he was at Saint Vincent College, and it sounds like Herbig could not be more grateful for those lessons.
In a video from the team’s website, Herbig was asked what it was like to learn from Harrison.
“He’s a great guy, great football player,” Herbig said. “Just him taking the time out of his day to show me some stuff after practice. It was only like 10 minutes, but I learned so much in that 10 minutes from a legend.”
Harrison spent well over a decade in the NFL, winning Defensive Player of the Year in 2008 and establishing himself as the Steelers’ all-time sack leader by the time he retired. There might be no pass rusher in recent Steelers history who is better to learn from. That 10 minutes with Harrison was probably packed full of more knowledge than most players accumulate in their entire career.
Herbig is an ascending player, and while he’s not a starter yet with T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith in place, he should still see a decent amount of time on the field this season. Last year, he flashed great potential as a rookie, and now with a full offseason under his belt, he should take another step forward.
Herbig has also made it a point to learn everything he can from Watt, which is a wise decision. Watt is arguably the best defender in the league, so getting to learn from him every day has to be a huge help. Players like Markus Golden have complimented Herbig this offseason too, seeing the growth in his game.
If Herbig continues to make use of knowledge imparted by greats like Watt and Harrison, he should be in line for a successful 2024 campaign. Perhaps at some point he may even become a starter, although hopefully that doesn’t come as a result of injury to any other player. Herbig’s progress this season will be interesting to follow. Maybe he can become the next great Steelers pass rusher.
