Now that the calendar has shifted to March, things will move fast and furious in the NFL landscape during the weeks ahead.
The NFL Scouting Combine is wrapping up in Indianapolis, and shortly after that, the legal tampering window for free agency will open. The new league year will be here before you know it.
Still, we have some time to kill. Today, I wanted to wrap up my Ranking The Steelers’ Starters series here at Steelers Depot.
Today, we’ll look at No. 3-1.
You can read the full rundown of the rankings here:
No. 24-22
No. 21-19
No. 18-16
No. 15-13
No. 12-10
No. 9-7
No. 6-4
As a reminder, here’s how the list looked from No. 24-1 ahead of training camp.
No. 24 — Broderick Jones, LT
No. 23 — Troy Fautanu, RT
No. 22 — Calvin Austin III, WR
No. 21 — Cameron Johnston, P
No. 20 — Derrick Harmon, DE
No. 19 — Mason McCormick, RG
No. 18 — Keeanu Benton, NT
No. 17 — Darius Slay, CB
No. 16 — Jaylen Warren, RB
No. 15 — Payton Wilson, ILB
No. 14 — Patrick Queen, ILB
No. 13 — Aaron Rodgers, QB
No. 12 — Pat Freiermuth, TE
No. 11 — Joey Porter Jr., CB
No. 10 — Jonnu Smith, TE
No. 9 — Isaac Seumalo, LG
No. 8 — Jalen Ramsey, DB
No. 7 — DK Metcalf, WR
No. 6 — DeShon Elliott, S
No. 5 — Zach Frazier, C
No. 4 — Alex Highsmith, OLB
No. 3 — Chris Boswell, K
No. 2 — T.J. Watt, OLB
No. 1 — Cameron Heyward, DE
Here’s how the list looks coming out of the season to this point.
No. 24 — Darius Slay, CB
No. 23 — Corliss Waitman, P
No. 22 — Jonnu Smith, TE
No. 21 — Calvin Austin III, WR
No. 20 — Broderick Jones, LT
No. 19 — Keeanu Benton, NT
No. 18 — Pat Freiermuth, TE
No. 17 — Payton Wilson, ILB
No. 16 — Patrick Queen, ILB
No. 15 — Mason McCormick, RG
No. 14 — Jaylen Warren, RB
No. 13 — Jalen Ramsey, DB
No. 12 — Derrick Harmon, DL
No. 11 — Isaac Seumalo, LG
No. 10 — Aaron Rodgers, QB
No. 9 — DeShon Elliott, S
No. 8 — DK Metcalf, WR
No. 7 — Troy Fautanu, RT
No. 6 — T.J. Watt, OLB
No. 5 — Alex Highsmith, OLB
No. 4 — Chris Boswell, K
Today, we’ll take a look at the final trio, No. 3-1.
N0. 3 — JOEY PORTER JR., CB
What a year for Joey Porter Jr. After missing time early in the season with a hamstring injury, Porter came back after the Week 5 bye week and went on a nice run of football, leading to some dominant play late in the season. Though he had five penalties in his first four games back from injury, after Week 10 of the season, Porter had just two penalties the rest of the year and was a true lockdown cornerback.
He’s learned how to be a physical cornerback while avoiding the penalties in the NFL, making more plays on the football in coverage. It led to a career-high 13 pass breakups in 2025. Porter was a sound tackler last season, too, chipping in off the edge against the run and doing his part to shut down potential big runs.
You’d like to see Porter add more ball skills and create more turnovers moving forward, but he plays like a true shutdown corner and has the numbers to back it up. He should get a big extension this summer, too.
No. 2 — ZACH FRAZIER, C
After a strong rookie season, Zach Frazier Tok another step in Year 2, continuing to play like one of the best centers in football. During the 2025 season, Frazier allowed just 10 pressures and one sack. He was formidable in pass protection and took a leap forward as the key communicator for the offensive line and the offense in general, setting protections in front of quarterback Aaron Rodgers.
Rodgers had high praise for Frazier after the season, stating that the Steelers should lock him up to a long-term extension quickly because of how smart he is. It’s not just what’s between the ears that makes Frazier great. He plays with good technique and leverage, forming a terrific interior for the Steelers.
He might not be in that conversation with the likes Creed Humphrey or even Tyler Linderbaum just yet, but he will be soon.
No. 1 — CAMERON HEYWARD, DE
At this point in Cameron Heyward’s career, I’ve run out of words to describe just how great he is. The 2025 season was another example of his talents in what is continuously shaping up to be a Hall of Fame career.
Heyward earned a second-team All-Pro accolade this season, finishing with 78 tackles, nine tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks, six pass breakups and one forced fumble. He was the highest-graded interior defensive lineman in 2025 from Pro Football Focus and probably should have been a first-team All-Pro.
Now, he’s set to return for Year 16 in the NFL in 2026. An extension could be in the making for the veteran, too. He’s showing no signs of slowing down, and on top of that, his leadership will never be more important than it is now entering 2026.
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