The Pittsburgh Steelers haven’t had a Defensive Rookie of the Year since 2001 with linebacker Kendrell Bell.
But if ESPN’s Seth Walder’s prediction comes true, they’ll have another Defensive Rookie of the Year in 2025, that being first-round pick Derrick Harmon, a defensive lineman out of Oregon.
In a piece breaking down a number of rookies and best picks, questionable picks, best situations to produce, and more, Walder highlighted Harmon as his pick to be the Defensive Rookie of the Year over the likes of New York’s Abdul Carter, Baltimore’s Malaki Starks, Cleveland’s Mason Graham, and more.
“Pass rushing wins awards, and Harmon had the second-highest pressure rate at defensive tackle in the FBS last season,” Walder writes, according to ESPN.com. “He’ll also get less attention next to Cameron Heyward, T.J. Watt, Alex Highsmith and Nick Herbig.”
The situation in Pittsburgh is quite good for Harmon. He lands on a team that has a good defensive front already with first-team All-Pro Cameron Heyward, future Hall of Fame outside linebacker T.J. Watt, and steady performers Alex Highsmith, Patrick Queen, and Keeanu Benton, among others.
That will keep plenty of attention off Harmon, which should lead to a number of one-on-one matchups, particularly in pass-rushing situations, should he be on the field enough in those moments.
If he is, Harmon should be able to produce some splash, much like he did at Oregon, where he led the FBS in pressures in 2024 with 55, consistently wreaking havoc in the backfield.
That said, Harmon only had 8.5 sacks in four years, so he’ll need to learn how to finish once he’s in the backfield.
Of course, his position also makes it tough to garner NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year honors. Since 2000, only three interior defensive linemen have won the AP Defensive Rookie of the Year: Ndamukong Suh with the Detroit Lions in 2010, Sheldon Richardson with the New York Jets in 2013, and Aaron Donald with the then-St. Louis Rams in 2014.
Since then, it’s been all EDGE rushers, cornerbacks and off-ball linebackers, including Los Angeles Rams EDGE rusher Jared Verse last season.
Harmon would need to have a monster year in 2025 to be in the mix for the Defensive Rookie of the Year award. It can’t be ruled out due to the defensive front he’s stepping into, but it’s unlikely Harmon will find himself in the conversation. He might not even play enough snaps, either, with Benton likely seeing an uptick in snaps in sub-package football.
But if he sees enough snaps and can produce, he has the pass-rushing abilities to make some big plays and garner attention, which could have him in the conversation if all goes well.
