This is the sixth in a series on the upcoming NFL Draft, which will take place April 28 through 30. Today: Defensive Line
Five quarters into the 2021 season, the Steelers' defensive line turned into All-Pro defensive tackle Cam Heyward and -- to use a term coined by Mike Tomlin -- a bunch of nameless, gray faces.
Stephon Tuitt, who was coming off his first-career double-digit sack season, didn't play a down because of the combination of a knee injury and the death of his brother in a hit-and-run accident. Nose tackle Tyson Alualu lasted just five quarters before being felled by a fractured ankle that ended his season.
That left the Steelers running more combinations of session players onto the field around Heyward than Chrissie Hynde has had with The Pretenders.
And like Hynde, Heyward might be special, but the Steelers might have to pay a little attention to the rest of the line.
That was the bad news. The good news was that young players such as rookie Isaiahh Loudermilk, a fifth-round pick last year, got experience he wouldn't have gotten had Tuitt and Alualu played.
The Steelers also signed Montravius Adams off the practice squad of the Saints after Carlos Davis, Isaiah Buggs and Henry Mondeaux failed at opportunities to show they could replace Alualu on the nose. Adams, a former third-round pick of the Packers, showed some promise and was re-signed in the offseason.
Davis, Mondeaux and veteran Chris Wormley, who replaced Tuitt, all return. But the key to the Steelers' defensive line play in 2022 is how of if Alualu and Tuitt play in 2022.
Alualu, who turns 35 this offseason, has said he will return this season. The Steelers have not gotten any such public statement from Tuitt, though they have consistently said they are optimistic about the 29-year-old's return to football this season.
The fact they didn't do anything to replace Tuitt in free agency suggests they do believe he will play football this season, but until there is an official announcement, that remains up in the air.
Regardless, with Heyward set to turn 33 this offseason, the Steelers could certainly use an influx of young talent at the position, especially after allowing an NFL-worst 146.1 yards rushing per game in 2021.
That largely happened because players who should have been seeing 10 snaps per game were playing three or four times that amount and getting blown off the ball or not doing their job and covering up the inside linebackers to allow them to flow to the football.
The question is, do the Steelers address that issue in the first round or do they wait until later rounds to do so?
Two of the top defensive tackles in this draft are former Georgia stars Jordan Davis and Devonte Wyatt. The two former Bulldogs couldn't be any more different in style of play.
Davis is a 6-foot-6, 341-pound nose tackle, while Wyatt is a shade under 6-foot-3, 304-pound defensive tackle who would likely be a 3-4 end in the Steelers defense.
But Wyatt is already 24 and lacks the length typically preferred by the Steelers. Heyward, Tuitt, Wormley and Loudermilk all are 6-foot-5 or taller.
Davis averaged just over 20 snaps per game at Georgia, leaving the field on passing downs. Part of the reason for that was because of the presence of Wyatt and Nazir Stackhouse, who is expected to be a top-10 pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
But Davis also admitted to getting as heavy as 360 pounds during the season before getting down to 341 pounds for the draft process. That affected his conditioning and speed.
At the "lighter" weight, Davis ran a 4.78-second 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine, showing he can have some burst if he keeps the weight off.
"Everybody knows I'm a run stopper and pass rush kind of goes by the wayside with me," Davis said. "But definitely in the offseason that's something I've been working on. I've called on a few people. I've been working out with Chuck Smith, who's known as Dr. Pass Rush. I feel when I have a disadvantage I want to make sure I try to even the odds and bring it up to the same level. It's just all working and about improving. This is what it's all about. In the offseason you want to get better. I definitely think I'm doing that."
The question for the Steelers would be do they use a first-round pick on a player such as Davis, who would likely play limited snaps, coming off the field when the team goes to its nickel and dime defenses. In 2020, Alualu's first as the team's starting nose tackle after being a backup to Heyward and Tuitt in previous years, he played just 43 percent of the defensive snaps.
The Steelers would seem to have a bigger need at nose tackle than defensive end after having drafted the promising Loudermilk in 2021.
If they choose to wait until later in the draft to address the position, they could wait until later rounds to do so.
Connecticut's Travis Jones might have pushed his way into the end of the first round with a solid draft process and at 6-foot-4, 333 pounds has the size to play nose tackle or defensive end in a 3-4 defense. He also had eight combined sacks in his past two seasons, showing a little more pass rush ability than Davis.
But Jones probably won't be available to the Steelers in the second round.
Nose tackle types who could interest the Steelers on the second day of the draft include Oklahoma's Perrion Winfrey, who lined up at the nose position in the Sooners' 3-3-5 defense, John Ridgeway of Arkansas and Neil Farrell of LSU.
Of that group, Winfrey plays the position more like former Steelers star Javon Hargrave as a penetrator, while Ridgeway and Farrell are more classic run stuffers who won't add much as pass rushers.
In later rounds, UCLA's Otito Ogbonnia, Noah Elliss of Idaho or Marquan McCall would be the top nose tackle prospects available.
If the Steelers opt for another mid-round defensive end prospect to pair with Loudermilk, a player such as Alabama's Phidarian Mathis on Day 2, or Iowa State's Eyioma Uwazurike or Sam Roberts of Northwest Missouri State in later rounds could interest the team.
Lolley's Defensive Line Rankings
1. Jordan Davis, NT, Georgia (6-6, 341)
2. Travis Jones, NT, Connecticut (6-4, 325)
3. Devonte Wyatt, DE, Georgia (6-3, 304)
4. Perrion Winfrey, NT, Oklahoma (6-4, 290)
5. Phidarian Mathis, DE, Alabama (6-4, 310)
6. DeMarvin Leal, DE, Texas A&M (6-4, 283)
7. Matthew Butler, DE, Tennessee (6-4, 297)
8. John Ridgeway, NT, Arkansas (6-5, 321)
9. Eyioma Uwazurike, DE, Iowa State (6-6, 316)
10. Neil Farrell, NT, LSU (6-4, 330)
Also See
Steelers NFL Draft Preview: Tight Ends
Steelers NFL Draft Preview: Running Backs
Steelers NFL Draft Preview: Edge Rushers
Steelers NFL Draft Preview: Interior Offensive Line
Steelers NFL Draft Preview: Inside Linebackers
