Coming out of Iowa, rookie defensive lineman Yahya Black’s NFL role was unclear, whether that was at nose tackle, defensive end, three-tech, four-tech, five-tech or even one-tech.
For now, in his first mandatory minicamp as a member of the Pittsburgh Steelers, Black is working on learning the 4i under Steelers’ defensive line coach Karl Dunbar. That said, Dunbar — who spoke to reporters Tuesday at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex on the South Side — stated Black will play all over the line of scrimmage and is being viewed as a defensive lineman overall.
“I see him as a defensive line. I think he’s gonna play everywhere,” Dunbar said, according to audio provided by the Steelers’ PR department. “Just training him right now at four-technique. But he’s gonna line up on the center, he’s gonna line up on the guard.”
Coming out of rookie minicamp with the Steelers just two weeks after being drafted in the fifth round at No. 164 overall, the big, hulking defensive lineman was unsure of what his role would be in his first season, whether that was at defensive end or nose tackle.
In early May, Black told reporters that he “couldn’t tell you” what his role would be, but that he’d go wherever he was told to line up.
Right now, that’s at defensive end in the 4i role, similar to what roles Cameron Heyward and Derrick Harmon — who is already seeing starting reps this offseason — play within the Steelers’ defense.
Having that type of flexibility with Black is huge, due to his size and ability to defend the run. Defending the run consistently down the stretch last season was a major issue for the Steelers, which is why there was a significant emphasis on adding run stoppers this offseason, both in free agency and in the NFL Draft.
Black is one of those the Steelers will be counting on to help stop the run. That’s the area of his game that Dunbar is most looking forward to seeing from Black, though he won’t get a great feel of that until the pads come on.
“I think right now his strength is the run game. He’s a big, strong, physical kid and we working on his pass skills and I think that’s the thing we really can work on with no pads on,” Dunbar said of Black. “And we’re gonna see what kind of physical guy he is when we put the pads on them.”
Right now, it’s just football in shorts. It’s not actual football, but as Mike Tomlin likes to say, it’s football-like. Once the pads come on, Black should be able to show his strengths and prove his toughness. But for now, he’s working at the 4i, learning the defense and still having some of that flexibility to line up all over the defensive line, which made him attractive to the Steelers in the first place.
