Pittsburgh Steelers Exit Meeting: DL Isaiahh Loudermilk
Experience: 4 Years
The Pittsburgh Steelers selected Isaiahh Loudermilk in the fifth round of the 2021 NFL Draft, but don’t forget one fact. The Steelers traded a 2022 fourth-round pick for the fifth-round pick they used to draft Loudermilk. In actual fact, they invested a fourth-round pick in him.
Did they get their money’s worth? Well, that depends upon how high your expectations are for Day-3 draft picks. The fact that the Steelers got four full years of contributions out of Isaiahh Loudermilk isn’t too shabby. It sounds better when you say fifth-round pick instead of fourth-round, but still.
So what did the Steelers get out of Loudermilk during the past four years? Well, he played in 59 games with five starts, logging 807 defensive snaps. His most extensive playing time came as a rookie, 288 snaps, with 2024’s 222 marking his second-highest workload. He has 63 career tackles with one for loss, one sack, and six passes defensed. Last season, he recorded 17 tackles and one pass defensed.
On the whole, there is nothing that he does very well or very poorly. He generally understands and has the ability to execute his assignments, as long as he is not asked to be overly athletic to do it. In those areas, Loudermilk certainly falls short, but the Steelers know who they’re dealing with.
At the same time, they have a very obvious problem in the running game, and the defensive line is not absolved. Cameron Heyward is the least of their problems, and their worst moments come when he is off the field. And, well, Isaiahh Loudermilk is not infrequently on the field for the Steelers when Heyward is on the sideline.
It seems likely that the Steelers will want to turn over the defensive line room this offseason, with Heyward and Keeanu Benton the only players who can be deemed safe. Larry Ogunjobi is a potential casualty, and Loudermilk is not a priority to re-sign. He is simply tapped out, with a rather low ceiling.
But he should be cheap and could serve as depth. Realistically, he might even be a guy they could keep on the practice squad, which wouldn’t be the worst thing. Frankly, Loudermilk is a lot better than practice squad defensive linemen Steelers fans have gotten excited about in the past.
The Pittsburgh Steelers find themselves at home, the inevitable result of another early playoff exit. This is a repeated pattern for the organization, with no clear end in sight. As the Steelers conduct their own exit meetings, we will go down the roster conducting our own. Who should stay, and who should go, and how? Who should expect a bigger role next season, and who might deserve a new contract? We’ll explore those questions and more in these articles, part of an annual series.
