The Steelers liked what they saw in Yahya Black when they drafted him in the fifth round. They still liked what they saw once he played. A big body in the middle of the defensive line, he has the tools to be an effective run stopper. He even has a little wiggle and room to grow as a pass rusher, but he is still more potential than production. Still, he has people excited, like Trai Essex and Charlie Batch, former Steelers who are now analysts.
“I think this is where we really struck gold. Nobody knew what they were gonna get out of Yahya Black”, Essex said on the Snap Count podcast recently. “On the field, I thought he played really big”. While he noted a decline late in the season, he said, “By and large, I thought we struck gold, and he’s gonna be a big part of our defensive line moving forward”.
After drafting DL Derrick Harmon in the first round, the Steelers continued to beef up the trenches in the last draft with Yahya Black in the fifth. And they needed Black to step up multiple times as Harmon missed games due to injuries. That’s where Batch was most impressed with the less heralded of the rookie defensive linemen.
“He showed up in a big way whenever [Derrick] Harmon was out, and this guy is continuously getting better on the upswing”, Batch said of Black. “When you look at what that is looking like, especially from a late-round draft pick, that right there is catching the attention. And I thought he probably would’ve been the defensive rookie of the year if it was not for Harmon’s late play at the end”.
Between Derrick Harmon in the first and Yahya Black in the fifth, the Steelers drafted RB Kaleb Johnson in the third round, OLB Jack Sawyer in the fourth, QB Will Howard in the sixth, and ILB Carson Bruener and DB Donte Kent in the seventh. All made the roster, with the latter two spending all or most of the season on the Reserve/Injured List.
Though he missed the first two games of the season, Derrick Harmon was an immediate starter for the Steelers. He logged 446 snaps in 12 games, finishing with 27 tackles and 3 sacks. Yahya Black played nearly as much with 416 snaps, plus 143 on special teams. He finished his rookie year with 28 tackles and 2 forced fumbles. In the team’s playoff loss, Harmon recorded a sack, and Black recovered a fumble forced by fellow rookie defender Jack Sawyer.
That’s not a bad showing for the Steelers’ defensive rookie draft class by any means. But neither Derrick Harmon nor Yahya Black was a finished product last year. And now they have a new defensive coordinator and defensive line coach, neither of whom is as experienced as their predecessors.
New Steelers HC Mike McCarthy gave the defensive line coach job to former Bengals DL Domata Peko. Considering he played through the 2020 season, he hasn’t had a long coaching career. This is just his third year in coaching, and his first in the NFL as a lead position coach. And the Steelers are putting Harmon and Black in his hands.
Recommended for you