After a dismal loss against the Cleveland Browns on Thursday Night, the Pittsburgh Steelers are in a weird spot. It's not unfamiliar territory for the team, as many seasons over the past decade have seen the club go on a rollercoaster throughout the campaign. One thing that is troubling to overcome is the missed tackles, and many of those issues fall on the feet of veteran linebacker Patrick Queen.
His career in Pittsburgh has been marked by inconsistencies. There are games where he appears to be a strong option as a top player at his position, but then he shows a lack of physicality in a game like he did against the Browns. It led to poor tackling and a lack of effort.
It's becoming clearer with each passing week that the Steelers must locate an upgrade over Queen this upcoming offseason.
Queen is set to hit free agency after this campaign, and the club seems eager to locate his replacement in the 2027 NFL Draft. One name to watch is Penn State linebacker Tony Rojas. The club sent a scout to watch him closely, and the star defender stood out even though his unit as a whole suffered. Rojas is someone on their radar and could become Queen's eventual replacement.
Pittsburgh Steelers could target Tony Rojas in the draft to replace disappointing Patrick Queen
For those of you who forgot, Queen signed a massive contract with the Steelers in free agency. The amount of money he received has never been worth their investment. He is getting paid top money at his position only to show the club he isn't living up to that billing. You could mark it down as another miss by Omar Khan, who continues to gain heat for his past decisions as general manager.
When it comes to Tony Rojas, sadly, he could see his draft stock take a tumble despite a strong career at Penn State. The college is known for producing strong linebackers at the next level, and he could be a perfect fit in Pittsburgh. He's a tough, physical, and athletic linebacker who could help elevate their defense. The Nittany Lions' season is spiraling, but Rojas is playing quality football.
Although Penn State's defense allowed an embarrassing 413 rushing yards in their contest against Northwestern, you can't put much blame on Rojas.
The young defender produced a fantastic stat sheet that should help him in conversations when the draft rolls around. Rojas produced 12 tackles, one sack, three and a half tackles for loss, and a pass deflection. Those are great individual numbers.
Right now, the Penn State linebacker is expected to go on Day 2 of the upcoming NFL Draft. He is someone to keep circled moving forward since the Steelers scouted him. They like local guys, and his ties to the Nittany Lions will keep him as a legit draft target. With Patrick Queen playing his way out of Pittsburgh for all the wrong reasons, perhaps Rojas will become their long-term solution.
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