Player: DL DeMarvin Leal
Stock Value: Down
Reasoning: Entering his fourth season, the Steelers still have no idea if DeMarvin Leal can help them along their defensive line. As a former third-round pick, he has offered little return on investment. While injury is a factor here, he is facing a pivotal season, which will start with a roster spot battle.
Going into 2025, it is not unfair to question whether DeMarvin Leal will be on the Steelers’ 53-man roster. Never mind that the team may draft two defensive linemen, who will need roster spots. The Steelers already have a crowded defensive line room in terms of volume, even if it still needs talent improvement.
The problem is, up to this point in his career, Leal hasn’t been convincing that he is a talent infusion. He has done rather little up to this point, and even his lone sack should have been a facemask penalty. See the header image for proof of that, in case you don’t remember. With 33 tackles on 432 snaps and limited pass-rush production, what has he earned?
Recently, Gerry Dulac suggested that the Steelers still don’t know what they have in DeMarvin Leal. He suggested that is part of the problem and why the Steelers feel they need to turn to the draft. While they are bound to come away with at least one defensive lineman, they may hope for two.
Whether they do or do not, one thing they have is volume. In the defensive line room, the Steelers have in addition to Leal the following: Cameron Heyward; Keeanu Benton, Montravius Adams, Dean Lowry, Isaiahh Loudermilk, Logan Lee, Daniel Ekuale, and Esezi Otomewo. That’s already more than enough to fill a 53-man roster and doesn’t include some fringe players. Add one or two rookies, and several people are on the outside looking in.
One can argue that the unknown is on his side, though. Going into Year 4 for the Steelers, DeMarvin Leal is still 24 years old. He admitted last season that he had some maturing to do in his first two years. Due to injury, he didn’t get an extended opportunity to show his growth last season. If he wants that opportunity in 2025, however, he will have to compete in an increasingly crowded room.
With the new league year underway and the Steelers turning their roster over, it’s once again time to “take stock”. It took a while, but we finally saw some of that change the team talked about after the season ended. Certainly, the move to trade for WR DK Metcalf qualifies as a change, not to mention the accompanying contract.
There is still a long way to go before we know what this Steelers team is going to look like. Once the dust settles on free agency, we turn our attention to the draft, and so on. What other moves might the team make, perhaps unexpected acquisitions or departures? If they traded for one player, they could certainly trade for another, or trade one away. This is a Steelers team starving for postseason success, but how desperate are they for a playoff win in 2025?
