Editor’s note: From now until reporting day to training camp at Saint Vincent College, TribLive is running through the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 90-man roster, looking at each player and assessing his outlook for the 2026 season. The breakdown will run in alphabetical order with two players each day between June 13 and July 28. Contract data courtesy spotrac.com.
DL GABRIEL RUBIO
Experience/age: rookie, 23
Contract status: $946,722 cap hit in 2026, signed through 2029
The past: Rubio played 39 games at Notre Dame but was an unsung prospect when the NFL Draft arrived. The 6-foot-5, 321-pound defensive tackle had 66 career tackles (27 solo, 7 for loss), 1½ sacks and one forced fumble but wasn’t invited to the NFL Combine. Rubio spent five seasons with the Fighting Irish, redshirting as a freshman in 2021. He made 13 tackles in six games as a senior before missing his final six games to an arm injury. He started five games in 2025 and three in 2024. His first three career starts were as a junior in the College Football Playoff quarterfinals, semifinals and championship game.
As a senior, Pro Football Focus gave him positive grades as a run defender (76.7) and tackler (80.1). He was the third-highest rated tackler on Notre Dame’s defense last season. Overall, PFF analytics graded his injury-shortened season a 73 on a 100-point scale.
He’d arrived at Notre Dame as a four-star prospect. Rivals ranked the St. Louis native 109thamong all high school recruits in 2021 and rated him as the ninth-best defensive tackle prospect nationally.
Notre Dame DT Gabriel Rubio Is One Of The Best Run Stuffers In CFB. Here's Why⬇️ pic.twitter.com/9pfgYsTCyK
— LandonTengwall (@LandonTengwall) October 10, 2025
2026 outlook: Rubio is the son of a former Steelers draft pick. His father, Angel, was drafted in the seventh round in 1998 as a defensive lineman out of Southeast Missouri State but was traded to the 49ers in August of his rookie year. This time, the Steelers drafted the younger Rubio in the sixth round. As pick No. 210 in April’s draft, he’ll likely need a strong camp to earn a roster spot.
Defensive line is one of the deeper positions on paper. The team returns its top four defensive linemen from last season — Cameron Heyward, Keeanu Benton, Derrick Harmon and Yahya Black — and has an abundance of depth options in Sebastian Joseph-Day, Dean Lowry, Esezi Otomewo, Logan Lee and Kyler Baugh. The team started last season with eight defensive linemen on the initial 53-man roster.
Rubio is an interior defensive lineman and played nearly all his Notre Dame snaps at one of the tackle positions. Steelers defensive coordinator Patrick Graham described him on draft day simply as “a big man up front” who is “hard to single block.” He noted that Rubio’s size makes him a potential asset on special teams as a kick blocker.