Mike's Beer Bar War Room: Leal could be a big hit, or miss, for Steelers

The Steelers didn't address their defensive line until the third round of the NFL Draft when they selected DeMarvin Leal of Texas A&M with the 84th pick, marking their highest pick on a defensive lineman since Stephon Tuitt in the second round of the 2014 draft.

But how does Leal fit in with his new team? What are his strengths and weaknesses? And what is the likely plan with this new addition?

As was the case with George Pickens, Leal has an impressive pedigree and has been on the national radar as an NFL prospect for quite some time. Like Pickens, before his final college season, many in the draft community had Leal penciled in as a first-round pick. 

Before he attended Texas A&M, Leal participated in the US Army All-American game with the other elite recruits in the country. He was the No. 2 overall defensive tackle recruit coming out of Texas' Judson High School, a football program well known for producing top end talent. 

Kenyon Green, Leal’s teammate in Texas A&M and a first-round pick by the Texans, was the only recruit in the state of Texas -- the best high school football state in the country -- ranked ahead of Leal. Leal also played tight end in high school as well as excelling as a basketball player at Judson. 

At Texas A&M, Leal made an immediate impact as a true freshman, then went on to start every game in his final two college seasons before declaring for the NFL Draft as a true junior. He racked up 8.5 sacks during his final college season despite being the focal point of every opposing blocking scheme. Leal won’t turn 22-years-old until July. 

In college, Leal showed remarkable versatility. He aligned anywhere from head up over the center to a 3-4 outside linebacker position and everywhere in between, even playing out of a two-point stance at times. Versatility is Leal’s calling card. That could be looked at as a positive or a negative when projecting him to the NFL. 

Leal has a very impressive body, with very little body fat and the ability to add or lose weight without much problem. However, he teeters on the line between versatile and tweener, with the latter carrying a negative connotation in that he could be a player without a true every-down home at the next level. 

When projecting Leal to the Steelers, it is obvious that he is not a nose tackle. In their base 3-4 scheme, Leal is certainly a defensive end. That being said, he physically doesn’t resemble players such as Aaron Smith, Brett Keisel, Cam Heyward or Tuitt. Leal measures in at just under 6-foot-4 and his arm length and wingspan are just middle of the road compared to the other interior defensive linemen in this draft class. He lacks the usual length of Steelers 3-4 ends, but he also isn’t deficient in this area. 

However, the Steelers don’t line up in their base 3-4 close to as often as the days of Smith, Keisel and Casey Hampton. Times have changed. Across the entire NFL, offenses had three or more wide receivers on the field for two-thirds of the league’s total snaps in 2021. And only the Rams aligned in 11 Personnel (1 RB/1 TE) with three wide outs more often than the Steelers’ division rival Bengals, who of course represented in the AFC in the Super Bowl. 

What does that mean for Leal? 

He has shown the ability to succeed in the SEC all over the defensive line of scrimmage, but he doesn’t profile to do so nearly to that degree in the NFL. This was a big reason why Leal was still available in the third round.

Leal appears most comfortable on the inside. But he isn’t a power player with a great anchor. NFL interior offensive linemen will move Leal in the run game. And while he can bump to a traditional 4-3 defensive end spot, Leal isn’t overly twitchy or explosive for that role for the Steelers, especially when compared to the edge rushers to which this defense has become accustomed. 

His testing numbers were underwhelming, and Leal’s motor too often ran hot and cold last year. He was also penalized more than you would like to see. And despite Leal’s spike in sack production, his film in 2020 was more impressive than what he showed last season.

That isn’t to imply that Leal doesn’t have talent. He certainly does. Leal is a natural bender with good balance, agility and body control. His get-off is very impressive and Leal has some pop in his hands. 

He powered through offensive linemen in college, but it is debatable if that strategy will be successful going forward. Leal has a variety of pass-rush moves he strings together well and with a plan. He also sees plays develop quickly and is very affective running stunts and twists.

But overall, especially for an interior defensive lineman, Leal is more finesse than power and isn’t overly violent. He is a big guy who would rather play like a small guy. In fact, 454 of Leal’s 685 snaps last year came from an alignment over or on the outside of an opposing offensive tackle rather than grinding it out on the interior. 

So where does this leave Leal with the Steelers? 

No one is to say that someone with Leal’s gifts can’t improve in just about all areas, including his power and anchor. 

If Leal hits at the next level, it will either be as a Michael Bennett-like base 4-3 defensive end who kicks inside on throwing downs and is used all over the defensive front. Or he possibly could wind up as an attacking upfield penetrating 3-technique defensive tackle. 

But neither type of these described defensive linemen is something the Steelers have prioritized in the past. However, this is a team with a new defensive coordinator in Teryl Austin and a massive defensive coaching influence in Brian Flores, who ran an attacking defense in Miami that would have suited Leal quite well. 

For now, expect Leal to compete for a role as an interior pass-rusher, especially on throwing downs. He could rotate in with Heyward and Tuitt in this regard from the start, and don’t forget, throwing downs no longer applies to just third-and-long situations. 

Plus, assuming Tuitt does return, how many snaps will the Steelers ask of him? And Heyward could use a break here and there for once as well. 

There is something with which to work with in Leal. And defending the pass is clearly more important in today’s NFL. But don’t expect this draft choice to come in and fix the Steelers' run defense problems from a year ago. 

His career is one that could easily go either way. He's a hit-or-miss prospect with little of a middle ground.