For years, the Pittsburgh Steelers’ pass rush has relied on T.J. Watt to make plays. He’s the leader of the unit, its “Captain America” in a lot of ways. But just like in Avengers: Endgame, he has backup coming from the left.
In a recent episode of NFL Daily with Gregg Rosenthal, Rosenthal said the Steelers’ pass rush is the best in the league, using a superheroes analogy to illustrate his point.
“This pass rush is like the Avengers,” Rosenthal said. “I don’t think people understand how good Nick Herbig is. He is one of the best pass rushers in the league right now and he’s on the same team as T.J. Watt. And now you add in Alex Highsmith, and [Cameron] Heyward is playing like an All-Pro.”
I suppose in this scenario with Watt being Captain that would make Herbig Sam Wilson, AKA, the new Captain America. A fresh face who has been learning from Watt while emerging as one of the top pass rushers at his position. He’s eased the burden for Watt, who is consistently facing multiple blockers. In fact, he’s thrived since taking the sidekick gig to Watt, registering two sacks and a forced fumble in the three games he’s started in Highsmith’s absence. If he keeps this up, he could be next in line to take the shield from Watt.
Highsmith is more like Bucky, the Winter Soldier. A familiar running mate with Watt, the two going way back. After missing some time, Highsmith is expected to return Sunday and add to the superhero squad. The Steelers will certainly be happy to have him back as he was dominating in his own right while he was healthy this season. In the New York Giants game before his injury, Highsmith was starting to find his footing after returning from a prior injury. He totaled six quarterback pressures and two sacks in that game in a monster performance.
Heyward, obviously, would be the Hulk. This sort of speaks for itself. He’s a monster of a man who stands the test of time. Fourteen seasons into his NFL career, he’s still a staple of the Steelers’ defense, smashing his opponents with six sacks already. Writer’s note: This was so close to being the perfect comparison. Heyward was drafted in 2011, and the first Avengers movie came out in 2012.
That’s not even mentioning Preston Smith, Keeanu Benton, Larry Ogunjobi, and everyone else who make this pass rush so dangerous.
This “Avenger” level unit has Rosenthal riding with the Steelers in a big way, picking the team to run over the Browns, 34-19. In the many possibilities across the multiverse, I’m sure Steelers fans would be happy with his prediction of his “Endgame” score.
