The Steelers bolstered the defensive via both the draft and free agency
Before the draft, the Steelers made a trade with the Baltimore Ravens for a defensive lineman who can, hopefully, assist in filling the void left with the departure of Javon Hargrave. The defensive lineman in question in Chris Wormley, out of Michigan.
Listed as a Nose Tackle (NT) on the Steelers official website, Wormley stands 6′ 5″ tall and weighs 300 lbs. I’m not really sure his weight is quite up to the standard of a prototypical 3-4 NT. Interestingly enough, Wormley is the only player listed as an NT. I don’t really know what to make of that.
In any event, Wormley’s productivity has been non-stellar, in my opinion. For his career, Wormley has started 15 games, has played in or has at least dressed for 39 total games, has 53 total tackles, 2.5 sacks, and has defended 7 passes. I have to say that, other than perhaps depth at both the NT spot and the DE spot, I don’t see Wormley making an immediate impact. Hopefully, I’m wrong and he’ll blossom into a superstar.
In the 2020 draft, the Steelers drafted three defensive players: Alex Highsmith, Antoine Brooks Jr., and Carlos Davis. Honestly, I can see all three of the aforementioned players having an immediate impact, albeit probably not in starting roles.
I can see Highsmith being the 3rd or 4th OLB in the rotation. He should get quite a bit of playing time. I can also see Brooks Jr. carving out a role as an ‘in the box’ safety in certain packages and/or pushing the presumed incumbent starting strong safety, Terrell Edmunds, for playing time.
Let’s wrap up this particular discussion by attempting to answer the question that was posed at the outset of the article.