The Pittsburgh Steelers are just three weeks into the regular season and are already facing some injury troubles on both sides of the football. The offensive line is beat up with Troy Fautanu already being out for at least the regular season and Isaac Seumalo still trying to recover from a pectoral injury. After the victory over the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday, the defense is pretty beat up as well. Cory Trice Jr. suffered a hamstring injury and Alex Highsmith went down with a groin injury — which will cause him to miss multiple weeks.
Jared Wickerham / Pittsburgh Steelers
Steelers' Alex Highsmith celebrates during a game against the Los Angeles Chargers in 2024.
Highsmith is a serious loss for the Steelers to overcome. He will be out for at least the Steelers’ next two games. In the meantime, Nick Herbig will take his spot in the starting lineup. Unfortunately for Pittsburgh, behind Herbig, there isn't really any depth at the position. Head Coach Mike Tomlin was asked how the team will address the depth during his press conference on Tuesday, and he let the media know DeMarvin Leal will be the third outside linebacker moving forward.
"You know, he's [Leal] been working at both spots anyways. Speaking of positional flexibility man, Leal throughout team development has been playing outside linebacker and defensive line. He did some last year, so it's not anything new for him. Really, I don't view that as a significant issue in terms of him elevating and getting more opportunity, it's more of the same really. It's probably more of what he desires to do because he definitively wants to play. This guy has had a good team development process and I'm excited about what he is going to do with increased opportunities."
Leal was initially drafted by Pittsburgh back in 2022 as a defensive end, which is what he has mostly played since joining the Steelers. In recent years, he has been asked to get a little bit of work in with the outside linebackers, and he has done exactly that. This has been known and he worked with the outside linebackers during training camp, but it's surprising to see the team relying on him as the only depth piece behind both Herbig and TJ Watt.
Karl Roser / Pittsburgh Steelers
Steelers' DeMarvin Leal ahead of Pittsburgh's victory over the Charges in 2024.
Leal is officially listed on the depth chart as a backup defensive end, but it was also known that he was the team's fourth outside linebacker going into the season. He has played over 150 snaps as an outside linebacker at the NFL level, but most of his playing time has come at defensive end or somewhere else along the defensive line.
The third-year player has never really been able to find his footing in the NFL. He has started six games so far in his career, while playing in 26 total, and has managed to record just one sack and 32 total tackles. He should be on the field more while Highsmith is out, which could lead to some more production for Leal.
Gene J. Puskar / Associated Press
Quarterback Deshaun Watson (4) throws over defensive end DeMarvin Leal (98) during the first half of a Pittsburgh Steelers game against the Cleveland Browns in 2023.
Steelers May Still Need To Look For Some External Depth At Outside Linebacker
Based on how Leal plays on Sunday against the Indianapolis Colts, Pittsburgh may want to look into adding some more help at outside linebacker. Leal will likely be on the field quite a bit due to Herbig and Watt taking breaks, and if he plays poorly, the team shouldn't trust him in such a vital position moving forward through the regular season.
Even though Leal has had experience as an outside linebacker, playing the position in-game certainly won't be easy. He has been within the Steelers' system for two years and some change now, so he should have a good understanding of every assignment. It will be interesting to see how Leal performs in his new-ish role with the Steelers.
What do you think of Tomlin trusting Leal with this role? Let us know in the comments below!
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