Player: OLB Alex Highsmith
Stock Value: Up
Reasoning: After missing three games due to injury, Alex Highsmith sounds set to return against the New York Jets. The Steelers have struggled to complement T.J. Watt in his absence thanks to Nick Herbig’s subsequent injury. Getting Highsmith back will be a big boost for a defense trying to go into the bye week strong.
Alex Highsmith has recorded 11 tackles, including two for loss, with a sack and a pass defensed in 123 snaps. Now, that may pale in comparison to what Nick Herbig could do, but let’s not kid ourselves. Highsmith is a great player, and the Steelers felt his absence.
Highsmith injured his groin playing against the Chargers in Week 3, a new groin injury from the one in camp. He did not return to practice until last week, working on a limited basis. While he worked limited yesterday, he expressed great optimism that he would play Sunday night against the Jets.
The Steelers began the season with only three true outside linebackers, Herbig backing up Highsmith and T.J. Watt. That is because they had Jeremiah Moon on the Reserve/Injured List and DeMarvin Leal could also flex inside.
But Leal is potentially out for the rest of the season, and I’m guessing we won’t see Nick Herbig again before the bye week. While Moon deserves credit for his efforts, getting Alex Highsmith back now would be a huge boost.
Highsmith is one of the most complete 3-4 edge defenders in the league, also a great run defender. While the Steelers don’t drop their outside linebackers into coverage as much anymore, he can handle his business there, too.
The bottom line is the Steelers can do a lot more on defense once they have Highsmith back. Even with Herbig, he is still a young player who has some limitations. And there is a reason the Steelers signed Highsmith to an extension a couple years back.
With the Giants losing left tackle Andrew Thomas to a reported season-ending injury, it’s even more fortuitous for Highsmith to return now, as they play them in two weeks. But first, he will have to face Tyron Smith, who is having merely a “good” year by his standards.
As the season progresses, Steelers players’ stocks rise and fall. The nature of the evaluation differs with the time of year, with in-season considerations being more often short-term. Considerations in the offseason often have broader implications, particularly when players lose their jobs, or the team signs someone. This time of year is full of transactions, whether minor or major.
A bad game, a new contract, an injury, a promotion—any number of things affect a player’s value. Think of it as a stock on the market, based on speculation. You’ll feel better about a player after a good game, or worse after a bad one. Some stock updates are minor, while others are likely to be quite drastic, so bear in mind the degree. I’ll do my best to explain the nature of that in the reasoning section of each column.
