Some players age out of the NFL quickly; some don't ever seem to age. The latter seems to be the case for Pittsburgh Steelers defensive lineman Cameron Heyward, a 2011 first-round pick. The four-time First-Team All-Pro defender has played the best football of his career in recent years and is prepped for his 16th NFL season in 2026.
But there's another defensive lineman even older who's still going strong... and he just joined an AFC North rival.
On Thursday, exactly one week from the start of the 2026 NFL Draft, ESPN's Adam Schefter reported that veteran defensive lineman Calais Campbell is signing a one-year deal with the Baltimore Ravens.
Campbell spent the 2025 season with the Arizona Cardinals, where he started and played in all 17 games, earning 6.5 sacks, nine tackles for a loss, and 16 quarterback hits. Campbell spent three years with the Ravens from 2020 to 2022 and will now return to the AFC North to face the Steelers twice in 2026.
What's most interesting about this signing is that Campbell, 39, will turn 40 years old before the start of the 2026 season.
The Pittsburgh Steelers will witness the battle of ageless defensive linemen against the Baltimore Ravens
If you thought Heyward was getting up there in age, he's a few years younger than Campbell. Still, by the time these two ageless defenders meet during the 2026 season, they will have a combined age of 77.
We sometimes see this in a pair of aging quarterbacks, but hardly ever between two defenders. Hewyward and Campbell won't be going head-to-head when the Steelers and Ravens meet (as they both play defense), but you can bet this will make for an interesting storyline to follow when they meet twice this season.
Will this finally be the year that Hewyard and Campbell show signs of aging? Who will have the more impressive performance when Pittsburgh and Baltimore square off? Will both players be healthy when they face each other?
These are all questions we'd love to see answered during the 2026 season.
Campbell has had a spectacular 19-year NFL career so far, spending over a decade with the Cardinals as well as playing for the Ravens, Jaguars, and Falcons. If Cam Heyward can last as long in the NFL, you can bet Pittsburgh Steelers fans would sign up for that.
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