Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker, Derrek Tuszka may not be a household name, but since he's arrived in the Steel City, he's been doing everything he can to establish himself both on and off the field. Tuszka was drafted by the Denver Broncos with the 254th overall pick in the seventh round of the 2020 NFL Draft before landing in Pittsburgh back in September of 2021. He was originally on the team's practice squad before being promoted to the active roster later in the same month. On the gridiron, Tuszka has continued to try and prove himself as a reliable depth piece at outside linebacker, and in the Pittsburgh community, he's been looking for ways to be just as reliable by trying to give back to charitable causes.
Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker, Derrek Tuszka (#48), participates in Organized Team Activities (OTA's) Thursday, June 2, 2022 at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex. | Abigail Dean / Pittsburgh Steelers
In a story reported by Teresa Varley of Steelers.com, we learn that Tuszka has been actively looking for ways to get involved in the Pittsburgh community. He has since combined his love for both aviation and animals, and visited No Dog Left Behind, a Pittsburgh area nonprofit. They focus on rescuing animals so they can be given a second chance through adoption.
"I got into aviation before college," said Tuszka via Steelers.com. "I have been into it since then and really love it. I was looking for some things in the Pittsburgh community. They found No Dog Left Behind, which flies to different places and picks up not just dogs, but also cats and other pets, in shelters that either don't have a home or might be in a kill shelter. They fly and pick them up and relocate them to wherever they need to be and give them another opportunity to get adopted.""It was very cool to see the whole operation and how it works," said Tuszka, who got to visit with some of the dogs who were rescued at the facility in the Allegheny County Airport in West Mifflin, PA. "They have a couple of vans too, so if there is a large shelter and they have a bunch of pets to go pick up and can't fit them all on the plane, they will drive.
Tuszka expressed how he has several dogs of his own and that this is something he's been passionate about since before college where he attended North Dakota State.
"I shared my interest in helping more, so hopefully I can help them out at some point and give some dogs another opportunity at having a home.""I started flying during college and flew throughout college," said Tuszka. "Whenever I do have a little break, I try to fly if I can. I can fly a fixed wing plane. I got my commercial multi engine rating. This offseason I got my commercial helicopter rating."
Tuszka finished the 2021 season playing in 15 games, with 1 forced fumble, 2 sacks and 18 combined tackles. As he continues to carve out his role with the franchise, he'll also continue to carve out his role within the city of Pittsburgh.
Read the full article here.
Are yinz looking forward to seeing Tuszka get more playing time in 2022? What are your thoughts of him trying to get more actively involved in the Pittsburgh community? Click to comment below!
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