"Superior": Steelers Rookie Already Far Ahead Of Now-Raider Connor Heyward

The Pittsburgh Steelers have welcomed their 2026 NFL Draft class to the Steel City and have recently held rookie minicamp. Among the many additions to the team's roster through the draft and free agency, there were many departures as well. One of those was tight end/fullback Connor Heyward, who made his mark as an all-around player. He played special teams, lined up at fullback, was the quarterback for the "brotherly shove", and occasionally caught passes as a tight end. He left the organization after his contract was up, and has since been signed by the Las Vegas Raiders. 

Heyward signed a two-year, $5.5 million max-value deal in March. He'll more than likely play a similar role in Sin City, but with more of an emphasis on special teams and playing fullback. 

His tenure with the Steelers was controversial, as many fans pointed to his brother being the reason he was kept on the team. He didn't have a ton of offensive production, but his value came from his special teams play. Heyward lined up as the personal protector for punts and was a key blocker on the kick and punt return units. 

Due to Heyward's departure, the front office decided to add another hybrid player. This time, using a fifth-round pick on Riley Nowakowski from the University of Indiana. Nowakowski has received comparisons to Heyward based on their style of play. However, the Athletic's Mike DeFabo wants the narrative to change. He believes Nowakowski is miles better than Heyward. He spoke about this on his podcast, The Yinziders. 

"I'm looking forward to him getting rid of these Connor Heyward comps because I think Connor Heyward was limited as a player and as an athlete in a lot of ways," Defabo said. "I think that Riley Nowakowski is superior in so many different ways that he's going to be a more functional and useful piece. So I think that you know, I'm interested to see how many different ways they try to use Riley Nowakowski and how valuable he could be." 

Heyward is only six-feet-tall and is extremely undersized, especially for a tight end. Nowakowski is listed as 6'2" and 250 pounds. This is a clear size advantage for the former Hoosier. He can line up in multiple spots, like Heyward; however, Nowakowski has proven to be a solid blocker against even much bigger players like edge rushers in college. 

Nowakowski is much better in the receiving game, too. His run-after-the-catch ability was one of the aspects that made him an attractive draft pick for the Steelers on Day 3.

DeFabo broke down some reasons why Nowakowski is a clear upgrade from Heyward, and why using a fifth-round pick was worth the investment. Head Coach Mike McCarthy's offense typically involves a fullback, too. 

"He's one of those guys that's legitimately versatile where he could line up as a fullback, and Mike McCarthy's used a fullback in the past, but he could also line up and play, you know, on the wing. He could play a traditional inline tight end," DeFabo said. "He could be detached from the line of scrimmage a little bit. You can move him around a lot."

Nowakowski can have a big role in the offense for a variety of reasons. McCarthy getting him involved could be crucial to the Steelers' run game returning to form. It seems as if old school football could be on its way back to the Steel City with a higher usage of a fullback. 

Steelers Want To Get Back To Running The Football Successfully

The Black and Gold now have two very solid running backs and a coach who wants to establish an elite run game. The team also drafted two new offensive linemen and a fullback. Running the football will be a point of emphasis for this new coaching staff. The new regime has added some modern aspects of the game, but the heart of the offense could be getting back to creating a solid run game to go along with the pass. 

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