With Pittsburgh Steelers OG James Daniels out for the season due to a torn Achilles, the team worked out two offensive linemen on Monday, bringing in J.D. DiRenzo and Garret Greenfield for workouts. Aaron Wilson of KPRC2 in Houston reported the news.
DiRenzo started his college career in the FCS, playing at Sacred Heart from 2017-2021 before finishing his career at Rutgers in 2022. He made his NFL debut for the Carolina Panthers in Week 15 of last season, playing seven snaps after being elevated off the practice squad. He had originally signed with Carolina as an undrafted free agent and later signed back with their practice squad after being a part of final cuts. He played in three games for the Panthers last season but was waived on August 6 with an injury designation.
DiRenzo measured in at 6045 and 306 pounds at his Rutgers Pro Day with 32 5/8″ arms. He had a 79 1/4″ wingspan and a 33 1/2″ vertical jump.
Greenfield signed with the Seattle Seahawks as an undrafted free agent following the 2024 NFL Draft after a career at South Dakota State, where he was teammates with Steelers OG Mason McCormick. His 38 1/2″ vertical jump at the 2024 NFL Combine is an all-time record for offensive linemen, and he also had a 5.22 40-yard dash time with 33 1/2″ arms. Greenfield played both left and right tackle in college, and Greenfield told Melanie Friedlander at the East-West Shrine Bowl he’s also open to playing guard in the NFL.
It makes sense that the Steelers are looking for options to fill out their line with Daniels now out for the season. We’ll see if they sign DiRenzo or Greenfield to give them some additional depth with two athletic offensive linemen.
Greenfield would be an interesting fit, given he’s more experienced as a tackle. While the Steelers did lose OT Troy Fautanu for the season, the team signed Calvin Anderson last week for additional depth at the position. All 51 of his reps in the preseason came at left tackle, so it would be tough having him transition to guard at this point.
While DiRenzo played in three games last season, it was mostly on special teams, as he played six snaps as a tackle eligible for his lone offensive snaps. However, he did play 102 snaps in the preseason last year, with 88 at left guard and 14 at right guard, so he would make more sense as additional guard depth.
Either way, the Steelers will likely move to bring someone in either from the practice squad, where they have John Leglue as an option, or outside the organization to add some depth to their offensive line with the loss of Daniels.
