Ranking the Room: Who is the top edge rushers for the Steelers in 2024?

With July officially here, I will be taking the time to rank the Steelers roster by positional group before training camp gets underway. The ultimate goal will be to create a ranked list of every play on the roster before camp gets started.

The rankings will be a mix of criteria. Mainly, I am looking at what players will put the Steelers in the best position to win this year. While long-term potential is considered, I care less about what a player can provide in 2025 as opposed to what they can do for the team this year. For rookies, their level of pro-readiness will be taken into account as well as their projection on the roster. We are continuing with the edge rushers today, and this may be the strongest positional group for the team.

Steelers seven edge rushers ranked

7. Julius Welschof

On paper, you have to love the size and traits that Julius Welshof has. He looks like he is built in a lab, but he barely produced while in college, indicative of his lack of rawness as a player. At 27 years old the odds are long for Welschof, but he qualifies for an exempted roster spot given his international status. The team has some time to see what they have in him even if the odds are long of him turning into anything.

6. David Perales

David Perales was an overly productive edge rusher in college which provided him some hype as an undrafted free agent last year. Unfortunately, that production wasn’t apparent with the Steelers last year, as he was invisible during training camp and preseason. He gets a second crack with the team, but I don’t like his chances this year.

5. Kyron Johnson

The next two names are the only ones you can really argue about, as they are similar players competing for the fourth edge rusher role on this team. Kyron Johnson has seen time with both the Steelers and Eagles and has played a lot of special teams during his time in the league. His lack of size is my biggest issue, but as a depth player and special teams ace you could do worse.

4. Jeremiah Moon

Jeremiah Moon is a very similar, traits-based edge rusher who can play on special teams and rotate in on defense. I list him ahead of Johnson due to his size. Moon has the prototypical height and weight to play on the edge and impressive length to boost. There could be something there, and he has the potential to be a quality depth piece long term.

3. Nick Herbig

The top three are set in stone. I will be the first to say I was wrong on Nick Herbig as an edge defender. His lack of size and length made me pause when the team drafted him a year ago, but he proved me and everyone wrong with a strong rookie season. He was dynamic in a very limited role and played on special teams as well. He could be in store for a big year two with his expanded role.

2. Alex Highsmith

Alex Highsmith has carved out quite a successful career as a former third-round pick. While his sack numbers dipped last year, he was still effective as a rusher and generating pressures. The sacks will bounce back. Highsmith has continued to improve his game every year, adding new pass-rush moves to his repertoire. On most teams, he would likely be their top pass rusher.

1. T.J. Watt

Most teams don’t have a T.J. Watt on their team though. Watt has been a freak pass rusher since being taken in the first round. He is consistently amongst the league leaders in sacks and impacts seemingly every play he takes part in. The expectations remain the same for him, as he should be one of the most productive pass rushers in the game once again.

While age is slowly creeping up on him, Watt should still have a few more elite seasons left in him. He can also benefit from the talent around him on defense, as it can give him more opportunities to make impact plays. Watt isn’t only the top-edge rusher on this team, he is also the best overall player for Pittsburgh.