After studying [individual pass-rush moves yesterday](https://steelersdepot.com/2025/07/ranking-the-steelers-top-five-pass-rush-moves/), we’re taking a larger look at the engines of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ pressure system today. The outside linebackers. The Steelers’ 3-4 scheme hasn’t changed much in decades and requires impactful EDGE rushers to fire off the ball and wreak havoc. Pittsburgh has a strong group heading into 2024. T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith as starters, Nick Herbig and rookie Jack Sawyer as depth.
So who is the most impactful? Below is a look at how often each of the top three – Watt, Highsmith, and Herbig – registered a pressure and/or sack. Using our defensive charting, we’ll determine each player’s “impact percentage,” how often a pressure/sack occurs on pass rush attempts. After, we’ll total the past two seasons and see who comes out on top.
Here are the rates for Herbig, Watt, and Highsmith, across the 2023 and 2024 seasons.
Player (Year)
Pressures + Sacks/Rush Atts
Impact %
Nick Herbig (2024)
30/201
14.9%
T.J. Watt (2024)
52.5/533
9.8%
Alex Highsmith (2024)
48/287
16.7%
Nick Herbig (2023)
12/65
18.5%
T.J. Watt (2023)
83/514
15.6%
Alex Highsmith (2023)
55/479
11.5%
The top individual score was Herbig’s 18.5 percent in 2023, though the sample size is admittedly tiny. Behind him last season is Alex Highsmith, who registered a ton of pressures despite not racking up the sacks. It suggests he’ll have a higher sack total in 2025. Watt’s 2023 season ranks third, though he also ranks last at under 10 percent in 2024.
Here are the combined numbers of the last two seasons.
Player (Total)
Pressures + Sacks/Rush Atts
Impact %
Nick Herbig
42/266
15.8%
T.J. Watt
135.5/1,047
12.9%
Alex Highsmith
103/766
13.4%
Herbig leads the group at 15.8 percent. Highsmith is next followed by Watt. Herbig has easily the fewest reps, but his sample size is enough to accurately evaluate. Presenting his efficiency isn’t radical news but it’s stark to see him clear Watt and Highsmith’s figures.
The only downside to all of this is Herbig’s future. Entering the third of his four-year rookie contract, is there a world in which he re-signs with the Steelers? Assuming a Watt extension occurs and Highsmith’s contract status — he signed through 2027 — remains unchanged, is Herbig destined to sign elsewhere in free agency after his rookie deal expires? That’ll be the 2027 offseason.
So much can change from now until then, but it makes sense for him to search for a full-time starting opportunity, and the payday that comes along with it, when the time comes. It’s another reason why Pittsburgh drafted Sawyer in the fourth round, getting a replacement ready two years ahead of time. Just in the way Highsmith was added as Bud Dupree’s eventual heir.