Mike's Beer Bar War Room: Herbig's sizzling start reminiscent of Watt

Last week, I profiled a Steelers rookie out of Wisconsin, Keeanu Benton. Let’s keep that theme rolling once again. 

While Benton didn’t play against the Bills, his college teammate and fellow rookie, Nick Herbig, certainly did. And Herbig shined. 

Only four Steelers defenders played more snaps against Buffalo than Herbig, and he saw plenty of early action. Josh Allen was pressured on over 40% of his drop backs in Saturday's 27-15 win. Herbig racked up a sack. He also hit Allen’s arm while throwing on another occasion. Against Tampa Bay, Herbig rushed the passer on just eight occasions and recorded a sack and a half. 

Simply put, Herbig has been outstanding. Through two preseason games, he is Pro Football Focus’ highest-graded Steelers' defensive player. His 90.6 grade narrowly beats out Alex Highsmith’s grade of 90.4, but Herbig's 40 snaps is 26 more than Highsmith's 14. Not only does Herbig have 2 1/2 sacks, but he forced a fumble and has a really impressive 22.7% pass rush win rate, which is amongst the best in the entire NFL thus far. 

Not only has Herbig been very difficult for Tampa Bay and Buffalo to block, but his Steelers' teammates have had a very difficult time dealing with Herbig on the practice fields at Saint Vincent College. One-on-one drills at training camp greatly favor the pass-rusher, but clearly Herbig has taken his impact from the practice field to the game -- a tremendous sign from this 21-year-old. 

Speaking of training camp practices, it is pretty clear to any observer that T.J. Watt, another former Wisconsin Badger, has a tremendous influence on Herbig. He’s been Watt’s shadow. Not a bad mentor. 

Lined up on the left side replacing Watt, Herbig performs a pass-rush move here that you rarely see around the NFL…unless it is by Watt. Oh, he also caused a fumble recovered by the Steelers as well. This is advanced pass-rushing by the rookie. 

The Steelers used the 132nd overall pick on Herbig. He was the 30th pick of the fourth round. At Wisconsin, Herbig was one of the best pass-rushers in the country. He had 20 sacks over the past two seasons and rushed the passer on just 400 snaps over those two years. That is a pretty good ratio. Only five defenders in the country last year had more quarterback hits than Herbig. 

Herbig has a wide variety of pass-rush moves with a distinct plan, even after his initial surge is defeated. His motor is elite. Herbig never gives up until the play is over. He also has many ways to defeat blockers, both in the run and pass game. He is extremely flexible and consistently shows excellent change of direction. Herbig isn’t only quick off the ball, but he closes very abruptly on his target. 

At the NFL Scouting Combine, Herbig was just over 6’ 2” and weighed in at 240 pounds, which was 12 pounds heavier than Wisconsin listed him. Herbig’s arm length and hand size are below average for his position. This, matched with his lack of bulk and ideal height, could have scared some teams off. Herbig isn’t an ideal fit for teams looking for massive edge players. But, that worked to the Steelers' benefit without question. 

His movement Combine drills were excellent however, highlighted by his 1.59 10-yard split. You see Herbig’s outstanding get off on the football field immediately. There was much discussion about Herbig transitioning to an off-ball linebacker in the pros, and maybe some of that could be sprinkled in going forward. But for now, Herbig has a home coming off the edge. 

Herbig’s excellent get off is apparent on this snap. Two of the biggest questions about Herbig as a draft prospect were his power to go through a blocker and his arm length. Well, here he bullies Dion Dawkins, an excellent left tackle, and gets his hand on Josh Allen in the midst of throwing the football, causing an incompletion. 

Herbig is also going to be a core special teams player for Danny Smith. Against Buffalo, Herbig played 10 of a possible 11 meaningful plays on special teams. Along with James Pierre, Miles Killebrew and Connor Heyward, Herbig will be one of the Steelers most counted on players in this phase of the game. The other guys, if they make the final roster, that will be counted on heavily in this capacity based on preseason usage are Miles Boykin, Mark Robinson (both of whom are likely making the team), Tanner Muse, Kenny Robinson and Elijah Riley. 

Rarely do we highlight special teams plays, and Herbig doesn’t even make the tackle on the Steelers' first kickoff of the game. But, over the course of the year, special teams tackles are very difficult to come by, and if any one player ends up with double digit special teams tackles, he is having a strong year. 

Herbig flies down the field and takes a great and aggressive angle to the returner, but was just the second Steelers player to make contact, so he didn’t get credit for the tackle. It was an excellent play, nonetheless. 

Along with special teams, Herbig should be a major contributor on the defense from the start. Like Benton, Herbig is legit and could become a fixture for the Steelers.