Steelers third-round draft pick might be more important than you realize

Steelers fans didn’t seem to be initially thrilled with the DeMarvin Leal selection, but here’s why this pick could prove to be crucial for Pittsburgh. 

I’m sure the Steelers fans who were also devout NFL Draft followers were banging on the table because of some of the names who narrowly went ahead of Pittsburgh’s third-round pick. Linebackers Christian Harris and Chad Muma were snatched prior to their pick in the third round and Nakobe Dean went one pick ahead of us to the Eagles.

Most Steelers fans who were following along no doubt had a player in mind they would have liked to see as the selection, but I’m willing to bet that it wasn’t DeMarvin Leal.

Leal was a lowkey player the Steelers had their eye on during the pre-draft process, and it’s not hard to see why. Though fans on social media didn’t seem thrilled about taking a tweener defensive lineman, this pick could prove to be more crucial than you realize.

The status of Steelers defensive lineman, Stephon Tuitt, is still completely up in the air. Though I was hoping to hear that he would be returning to the team long before the NFL Draft took place, we really have no insight to his intentions at this point in time.

Did Steelers draft Leal to replace Tuitt?

It’s very possible that Leal could be that eventual replacement to Tuitt. While they are different types of players, Leal has enough size for Pittsburgh to mold him into a 5-technique in the NFL (the role Tuitt and Cameron Heyward play in Pittsburgh’s base defense). However, Leal’s best role at the next level might be as a knifing 3-tech on sub-packages.

Even if he doesn’t replace Tuitt’s role in a full-time capacity, it was pivotal that Pittsburgh added quality, young depth to their defensive line, as this unit was less than stellar without Tuitt’s services in 2021. Last year, the team finished dead last in run defense in terms of both yards allowed per game and rushing yards per attempt.

While Leal isn’t known for his run-stopping ability, he should offer the team a terrific pass-rusher who can lineup all over the formation. In college, Leal was a base defensive end, but he was quite impressive for a player listed at 290 pounds.

As a 20-year-old last season, Leal earned 58 tackles, 12.5 tackles for a loss, and 8.5 sacks, according to Sports Reference. Not only was his production noteworthy, but he flashes on tape often with an explosive get-off and remarkable bend for a player his size.

During his 2020 season at the age of 19, most NFL Draft experts believed that Leal was going to be a high future first-round pock — possibly a top-10 selection. For some reason or another, Leal didn’t impress teams as much this year, and his slip in the draft ultimately becomes Pittsburgh’s gain.

At the very least, DeMarvin Leal is a player who can offer very good depth and pass-rush ability from multiple positions for the Steelers; however, I think he could be much more than that. Leal is a gifted football player who I think becomes a starter for Pittsburgh — maybe even the replacement for Stephon Tuitt.