Over the weekend, Hall of Famer Dick LeBeau reflected on DT Cam Heyward’s career and excellent 2024 season. Attending last weekend’s festivities as the Pittsburgh Steelers inducted him into their team Hall of Honor, LeBeau said Heyward was his No. 1 choice leading into the 2011 NFL Draft.
“Cam was definitely my guy that year,” LeBeau told Steelers reporter Amanda Godsey. “And here he is still playing.”
Heyward became the 31st pick of that year’s draft, falling in part due to offseason elbow surgery that limited his pre-draft participation. That fall worked into the Steelers’ favor, able to snag a top-10 talent at the end of the first round.
A perfect fit for the Steelers’ rugged defense, Heyward had to be patient. Playing behind veterans like Brett Keisel and Aaron Smith on an excellent unit that had just gone to the Super Bowl, Heyward wouldn’t become a full-time starter until his third season. From there, he flourished and once the team changed his position from defensive end, where he competed against true edge rushers, to defensive tackle, the accolades came pouring in.
He figures to garner more after the 2024 season. Despite being 35, Heyward is set to record a double-digit sack season and sits 1.5 back from the team lead. Finishing the year with three sacks over the team’s final four games would give him the most ever by a defensive tackle his age in NFL history. LeBeau acknowledged Heyward is having one of his “best seasons” coming into a year in which many assumed he’d decline.
Of course, LeBeau also had to mention Heyward was a fellow Buckeye. LeBeau spent his college days at Ohio State 50 years before Heyward. LeBeau was inducted into the school’s Hall of Fame in 2009. Heyward will certainly one day follow.
And one day, as LeBeau was over the weekend, Heyward will follow him into the Steelers’ Hall of Honor. The only question is if Heyward will also receive a gold jacket from Canton. With the season he’s having, Heyward is doing everything to cement his case.
