Many fans wondered what the Pittsburgh Steelers would look like without Alex Highsmith in Week 5 against the Cowboys. Nick Herbig was coming off the first start of his career against the Colts, but things didn't go as planned. A bounce-back game was needed... and Herbig delivered.
Though the Steelers fell to the Cowboys on Sunday Night Football due to a last-second touchdown pass from Dak Prescott, it wasn't because of Pittsburgh's dynamic edge rusher duo. The tandem of Herbig and T.J. Watt met at the quarterback on several occasions and made Dak's job more difficult.
When Pro Football Focus handed out grades from Week 5, Herbig and Watt earned the two highest grades among edge rushers, respectively.
The Steelers had the two highest-graded edge defenders this week 🤯 pic.twitter.com/DccLa4Q2Zt
— PFF (@PFF) October 7, 2024
With a 91.0 overall grade, Herbig was spectacular against Dallas, as he humiliated rookie offensive tackle Tyler Guyton on numerous occasions. Watt was equally as dominant on the opposite side while unsurprisingly drawing more attention from the Cowboys' offense. With this performance, Watt became the second-fastest player in NFL history to earn 100 sacks.
Unfortunately, Herbig left the Sunday Night Football contest early after suffering a hamstring injury. Now fans have legitimate cause for concern.
Steelers' edge rusher dominance could be put on hold
T.J. Watt and Nick Herbig already had the makings of a lethal pairing with Alex Highsmith down. Now the spectacular play of their edge rushers could be put on hold.
When Mike Tomlin spoke to the media for his Week 6 press conference, he informed us that both Highsmith and Herbig have already been ruled out against the Las Vegas Raiders this week. To make matters worse, backup edge rusher DeMarvin Leal has also been ruled out with a neck injury.
This means the Steelers will be counting on Jeremiah Moon in his second-ever game with Pittsburgh to start opposite Watt. Meanwhile, Tomlin mentioned that Isaiahh Loudermilk (an interior defender by trade) will take snaps on the edge. Pittsburgh will also be forced to call up one or both of Eku Leota or Adetokunbo Ogundeji from the practice squad.
With Herbig and Highsmith out, Watt is expected to draw even more attention from the opposing offense in Week 6. Let's hope a committee of unproven pass rushers is up to the task on Sunday. It's safe to say we shouldn't be expecting similar PFF grades from the Steelers' edge rushers against the Raiders.