When the Pittsburgh Steelers selected defensive lineman Derrick Harmon No. 21 overall in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft in Green Bay, the belief was they were getting a player who fits like a glove to not only the Steelers’ defensive scheme but their culture and play style, too.
After all, Harmon models his game after Steelers All-Pro defensive tackle Cameron Heyward and certainly looks the part on tape.
Heyward himself is quite excited to have Harmon on the roster because of what the Oregon product can do for the Steelers’ defensive line moving forward.
The fit is seamless for Harmon and the Steelers. In fact, The Athletic’s Ted Nguyen named Harmon the fourth-best player/scheme fit among all selections in the NFL Draft, behind only Missouri OT Armand Membou with the New York Jets, Michigan TE Colston Loveland with the Chicago Bears, and Ohio State WR Emeke Egbuka with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
“Cameron Heyward has been a stalwart and a vital part of the Steelers’ defense for 14 seasons. The Steelers ensured they’ll keep their tradition of having a hard-nosed 4-technique defensive lineman by drafting Harmon,” Nguyen writes. “For years, Heyward’s ability to eat up gaps inside of the Steelers’ defense kept their linebackers clean, and his ability to push the pocket gave their edge rushers better angles to pressure the quarterback.
“Harmon is heavier but has nearly identical height, arm length, and 40 time as Heyward.”
Harmon had a great 2024 season at Oregon and brings great physicality, size and athleticism to the trenches and should be the next building block for the Steelers along their defensive line. He’s been largely praised as that big, physical piece the Steelers have needed along their defensive line, and pairing him with Heyward and Keeanu Benton moving forward is quite positive for the Black and Gold.
After giving up 299 rushing yards to the Baltimore Ravens in a January Wild Card Round loss, the Steelers set out to improve physicality and add significant run defenders to their roster this offseason. Harmon accomplishes that goal in a major way.
He was arguably the best defensive lineman in the draft class, and the Steelers got a steal landing him at No. 21 overall. He’ll slot in immediately as the replacement for Larry Ogunjobi, who was released before the start of the new league year, saving the Steelers some cap space while opening a hole defensively.
“Heyward, Keeanu Benton and Harmon should be a stout front, and Harmon will give them a more athletic option next in even fronts (two interior defensive linemen) that they can use situationally,” Nguyen added. “The Steelers likely had a future without Heyward in mind when making the pick, but they were likely motivated by the memory of giving up 519 rushing yards to the Ravens in their last two matchups, including the playoffs.”
Harmon led the FBS in pressures from an interior defensive lineman last season at Oregon with 55, and he brings some real juice as a pass rusher — much like Heyward does. Having Harmon learning from Heyward should do wonders for the young defensive lineman and should carry along the tradition in the Steelers’ defensive line room for years to come.
