Nick Herbig injured his hamstring on just his third defensive snap during the second preseason game on Aug. 16, and it forced him to miss the Pittsburgh Steelers’ Week 1 game against the New York Jets. It sounds like he is trending toward playing in Week 2 against the Seattle Seahawks.
“OLB Nick Herbig (hamstring) said he’s ‘very optimistic’ he’s going to play on Sunday vs. Seahawks,” ESPN’s Brooke Pryor wrote on X.
OLB Nick Herbig (hamstring) said he’s “very optimistic” he’s going to play on Sunday vs. Seahawks
— Brooke Pryor (@bepryor) September 12, 2025
With Herbig out in Week 1, rookie fourth-round OLB Jack Sawyer was the primary rotational pass rusher to spell T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith. He had one total tackle in his 15 defensive snaps. He also played 23 snaps on special teams. His share of the backup snaps should fall off with Herbig’s return, though the Steelers may ease him back in at first.
Herbig is one of the top backups in the league and would likely be a starter on several teams in the league if he wasn’t stuck behind Highsmith and Watt on the depth chart. He’s been one of the NFL’s most productive pass rushers since 2023.
In just 606 career defensive snaps, Herbig has an impressive 8.5 sacks, 10 tackles for loss, 14 QB hits, and six forced fumbles. In fact, one of his breakout performances in his rookie season came against the Seahawks in Seattle. He arguably won the game for Pittsburgh with a strip-sack that he recovered late in the fourth quarter.
The Steelers got very little pass-rush juice out of Sawyer in his NFL debut, so having an efficient rusher like Herbig should help spark their sack rush this week if he can play.
Herbig had his first full practice yesterday and now tells the media he’s optimistic to go on Sunday. The Steelers’ final injury report should be released in the next few hours as the Seahawks finish practice on the west coast Pacific Time.
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