Cameron Heyward's injury was worse than many originally thought. The veteran defensive lineman will have surgery according to reports on his groin. Unfortunately, this will keep him out of action for up to eight weeks, which will prove to be a significant test for the Steelers like it was last season with T.J. Watt out of the lineup. Expect the club to try and address this loss internally first before drastic measures are taken.
Another thing that could affect the Steelers attack this issue is the current players on the roster. Keeanu Benton and DeMarvin Leal are likely to be the two that have to step into a role that will try and fill Heyward's void. That is a tall task for these young players, and it could create a lot of headaches on defense and for the leadership of this football team moving forward.
For this reason, an external addition could be required in the absence of Cameron Heyward. Here are four replacement options the Pittsburgh Steelers could explore.
Steelers could add a familiar face off another team's practice squad
The Carolina Panthers just finished signing former Steelers defensive lineman Chris Wormley to their practice squad. He is coming off a season-ending injury a year ago and seems to be on track to be ready for football action around this time. Worlmey is someone that Pittsburgh knows very well and could be a good option to snatch from the Panthers' practice squad.
Wormley is coming off a tough injury that could hinder his career moving forward so that could be a concern. The veteran defensive lineman played well in a depth role in Pittsburgh during his time here and has shown the ability to rush the passer. Perhaps having Benton on the field on rushing downs and adding Wormley into the mix on passing situations would help soften the blow of losing Heyward.
There could be a trade worked out with Washington for a star player
Another alternate route that the Steelers could take is looking at their trade options. We quickly learned this past offseason that Omar Khan is not afraid to get creative in acquiring talent for his football team. He made a trade earlier this offseason to bring in veteran receiver Allen Robinson II from the LA Rams.
With Heyward missing a good chunk of the season, it is possible that there could be a trade in the works at some point. The guys that they currently employ on the defensive line will get the first crack at holding the line without Heyward, but that might not be enough. Khan might need to get back into the trade market and add someone with impact.
With the Steelers first game resulting in a bludgeoning, a trade of assets might not be the smartest option for now. Adding an impact player might help turn things around for Pittsburgh and Chase Young might be that guy. He could be a future impact guy for the Steelers and the questionable health situation for Larry Ogunjobi could even make this trade more sensible.
Young would probably be a rental as he is in need of a contract extension, but Pittsburgh needs someone to help them now. Mike Tomlin has always liked the Washington Commanders player ever since he was coming out of college. Young is an immediate impact player on defense if he can stay healthy throughout the season.
Pittsburgh could add a veteran via free agency to bolster their defensive line
One guy who is currently on the street and has a small connection to the Steelers current front office is Ndamukong Suh. Andy Weidl is the Assistant General manager for Pittsburgh and was over at the Eagles front office last season while Suh was with them. Weidl has a lot of say with the black and gold, especially when it comes to adding to the trenches.
Weidl was a big proponent for bringing in Isaac Seumalo in free agency to upgrade their left guard spot. It might be time he speaks up to add someone on the defensive side of the ball. Suh is not the same dominant player that he once was, but he could still provide an impact in a certain role. It might take some time to get into football shape.
Suh has been out of football since Philadelphia lost the Super Bowl back in February. Ever since then, he has been waiting for another opportunity to play to pop up. The Steelers could be a nice landing spot for him. He is not afraid to play in the cold and he brings a nasty mentality to the game that this club has been trying to form in their locker room.
He might not be able to play every snap anymore, but he could be a good situational player that brings something to the locker room. Having Leal and Benton play a good number of snaps and add Suh into the game could provide things to boost the defensive line. Suh has proven that he is willing to take a step back in terms of snap counts to continue playing.
Every Steelers fan would love for the Watt brothers to unite in Pittsburgh
Everyone is going to be talking about this until someone finally dispels these thoughts once again. J.J. Watt will have to probably come out publicly for the millionth time to say he is not coming out of retirement to play for the Steelers. It seems like any time there is even an ounce of hope that both Watt brothers could team up, there is always news around it.
It hit an all-time high when J.J. was a free agent a couple of years ago, but he decided to move out west and play for the Arizona Cardinals instead of joining his brothers in Pittsburgh. He has come out publicly recently that he does regret not playing with his brothers with the Steelers. That was also said recently and before Heyward was ever injured.
Watt never really played the type of game that Heyward has during most of his career. Watt could be capable of doing that, but he has not been working out to be in football shape ever since he retired from the game after last season. He would provide a tremendous story to this defense and would be a fun player to watch on Sundays.
The other issue is how much money would Watt be willing to play for. The Steelers don't have a ton of cap space to work with right now so they would need to get creative. It seems like a pipe dream for J.J. to come out of retirement as he seems perfectly content with his life outside of football. Perhaps the opportunity is too good to pass up for him, or maybe it will always just be something the fans will dream about for eternity.