Early in the season, the Pittsburgh Steelers are being tested from a depth perspective as the injury bug has bitten them quite hard in the first three weeks.
Standout outside linebacker Alex Highsmith is out for a few weeks with a groin injury, and second-year cornerback Cory Trice Jr. is on Injured Reserve with a hamstring injury.
That doesn’t even mention the offensive side of the football. Quarterback Russell Wilson remains out with a calf injury, running back Jaylen Warren is battling a knee injury, and rookie right tackle Troy Fautanu is likely going to miss the rest of the season after suffering a serious knee injury in practice last week.
Despite all of the injuries, the Steelers just continue to roll on.
Sitting at 3-0, the Steelers have a chance to move to 4-o Sunday in Indianapolis, even without Highsmith opposite Watt. That’s a testament to the talent and the production that second-year pro Nick Herbig brings to the table for the Steelers.
During an appearance on the 102.5 WDVE Morning Show Friday, captain and star defensive lineman Cameron Heyward stated that he believes the Steelers have the best depth on the defensive side of the football that they’ve ever had since he’s been in Pittsburgh.
“There’s just depth all over the place. Whether it’s the secondary and you have a guy like Cory Trice in waiting, whether it’s up front where you get a guy like Nick Herbig, who’s playing this week,” Heyward said, according to audio via 102.5 WDVE. “Inside linebackers, you got three inside linebackers that are nonstop in Elandon Roberts, Patrick Queen and Payton Wilson. It’s just, it’s full of young guys, old guys, and just depth all around that.
“We really haven’t had that, I can say, in my tenure here.”
Depth on the defensive side of the football has previously been a concern for the Steelers, especially as injuries piled up and left them thin at key spots.
So far this season, even with a concern at cornerback without Trice as key depth, the Steelers are stocked well from a depth perspective. Losing Highsmith was a big blow, especially as he tweaked the same groin injury he had in training camp, but the emergence of Herbig lightens that blow quite a bit, especially after he had two sacks in relief of Highsmith in Week 3 against the Los Angeles Chargers.
The defensive line around Heyward is pretty deep, too, with the likes of Montravius Adams, Dean Lowry and DeMarvin Leal providing key depth and Terrell Edmunds, Damontae Kazee and Miles Killebrew providing great depth at safety.
Things are in a good place for the Steelers on the defensive side of the football, both from a depth perspective and from a performance angle. It’s the best Heyward can recall in his Steelers tenure, which is rather telling. The arrow is very clearly pointing up on the defensive side of the football, and depth is a major reason why.
