Should Henry Mondeaux get a chance with the Steelers after Stephon Tuitt’s injury?
By Tommy Jaggi
The Steelers lost a valuable member of their football team last week when Stephon Tuitt landed on IR. Should practice squad standout, Henry Mondeaux be given a chance?
Henry Mondeaux is a name you probably haven’t heard since NFL roster cuts before the start of the season. That’s because the Steelers elected to part ways with the former Oregon defensive tackle only to later resign him to the practice squad.
In his second NFL season, Mondeuax was a preseason standout for Pittsburgh. Though his numbers didn’t break the box score, he was impressive against the run, and was able to get pressure on the quarterback.
Henry Mondeaux is a big defensive lineman who possesses sneaky athleticism. In fact, Mondeaux was originally recruited as a tight end by Oregon, but immediately made the switch to defensive tackle.
The three-star recruit bulked up to 290 pounds by his senior season, and he managed 45 tackles and 5.0 sacks in 2017 during his final college football season.
Mondeaux spend some time with the New Orleans Saints as a rookie in 2018, but never saw any game action. He was signed this offseason by the Pittsburgh Steelers, and he was quite impressive in preseason.
According to Pro Football Focus, Mondeaux received a high grade in several preseason games earlier this year:
Top Defensive Grades From Preseason Game #1
— PFF PIT Steelers (@PFF_Steelers) August 10, 2019
LB Tyler Matakevich (93.3)
LB Ulysees Gilbert III (92.2)
DI Henry Mondeaux (90.4)
ED Tuzar Skipper (89.7)
S Marcelis Branch (76.4)
LB Devin Bush (70.6) pic.twitter.com/9I9EHb1mAJ
The big defensive lineman was impressive in limited action, and some thought that he may earn a spot on the final roster. Mondeaux finished the preseason with an 81.4 overall grade from Pro Football Focus, and made PFF’s Team of the Week back in August:
Notable cuts on defense with 2019 preseason grades:
— PFF PIT Steelers (@PFF_Steelers) September 1, 2019
DB Marcelis Branch (90.1)
LB Jayrone Elliott (90.0)
DL Henry Mondeaux (81.4)
S Marcus Allen (71.0)
DB Dravon Askew-Henry (46.1) pic.twitter.com/JlPqT1FYxF
Stephon Tuitt was having a monster year for the Steelers in what was easily his best performance so far in his career. It was an interesting decision for Pittsburgh to bring back 27-year old defensive lineman, L.T. Walton, after news broke of Tuitt’s pectoral tear.
Even with Walton now on the roster, the Steelers could elect to seek added help. Mondeaux doesn’t have any NFL game experience, but he looked the part this preseason, and he did enough to earn a shot.
Next. Should the Steelers trade for former receiver, Emmanuel Sanders?. dark
The NFL trade deadline ends at 4:00 PM ET on October 29th. It’s possible the Steelers could seek some outside help in this area, however, they are most likely to fill Tuitt’s role in-house. If that is the case, perhaps Mondeaux gets a shot at a promotion if Pittsburgh seeks added depth along the defensive line.