The Pittsburgh Steelers made a 649-pound bet along the defensive line with their first- and fifth-round picks in the 2025 NFL Draft. The unit desperately needed an infusion of youth, but with the understanding that there may be some rookie growing pains along the way. Derrick Harmon and Yahya Black have played plenty this season, and DC Teryl Austin is delighted with the way things are headed.
“I think those young guys are playing well. I think our defensive line is playing well. Really for us, it all starts up front and how those big guys control the game because that’s what this game is. It’s a big man’s game, and I think those young guys are continually getting better,” Austin said in a transcript provided by the team. “Like any young person or young player, they’re going to have days that maybe aren’t as good or as great as maybe others, but in terms of their advancement and how they’re developing, I’m very pleased with those guys.”
Harmon had a delayed start to the season after a knee injury in the preseason, but has since played 51 percent of the team’s defensive snaps. He has helped stabilize a unit that lost Daniel Ekuale, Isaiahh Loudermilk and even Dean Lowry, if you go back further into the offseason.
His production trailed off after seven total tackles and two sacks in his first three games, but his impact goes beyond the box score. He has shown flashes of being able to leverage his length to overpower opponents, and he’s surprisingly adept at hand fighting this early. And 3-4 defensive linemen aren’t always flashy, sometimes being asked to occupy multiple blockers to free up linebackers to make plays. He’s starting to do a nice job of that as well.
Black has played 29 percent of the Steelers’ defensive snaps this season, which is a pretty strong number for a rookie fifth-round pick. Has he had the impact that many thought he could have back when he was the talk of the town in the preseason? Probably not. But his progress has been solid.
Recently they have started working him into nose tackle reps. That’s where his 336-pound chassis comes in handy. This is the kind of run-stuffing play that reminds you of the early 2000s Steelers defense.
The arrow is pointing up for both players, and for the defensive line group as a whole.
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