Steelers’ Star-Studded Defensive Line Gets Love in League Ranking

When you think of the Pittsburgh Steelers, one of the first things that likely comes to mind is grit. Over the years, the franchise has consistently fielded countless tough, hard-nosed, determined players.

That especially applies to the defensive side of the ball. Up front, specifically, Pittsburgh is generating quite the buzz as the NFL offseason continues. Zoltán Buday of Pro Football Focus is buying all of the stock for the Steelers’ defensive line, slotting that group in at first overall in his ranking of all fronts in the league.

Steelers’ Defensive Line Given Ultimate Praise in PFF Ranking

It all begins with the stars, writes Buday, as T.J. Watt and Cameron Heyward get a tip of the cap. Rookie first-round pick Derrick Harmon, however, shouldn’t be ignored.

“Led by edge defender T.J. Watt and interior defender Cameron Heyward, the Steelers’ defensive line continues to be the best in the NFL,” Buday wrote. “Two Pittsburgh players were among the 30 highest-graded interior defenders, and three ranked in the top 20 among edge defenders last season. Heyward’s 90.1 PFF overall grade ranked second at his position, while Watt’s 91.7 mark was the third highest among edge defenders. The Steelers even selected interior defender Derrick Harmon with their first-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, further bolstering an elite unit.”

It shouldn’t come as a surprise that Watt, who had 11.5 sacks last season, graded out terrifically. His ability to rush the passer at a high level while also playing tremendous run defense (91.4 PFF grade) is second to very few. Not only that, but he managed to force a staggering 6 fumbles with 39 “stops” in 2024-25.

Even at the age of 36, Heyward can still turn in some great efforts. The lifetime Steeler came back from a shortened 2023 campaign with a vengeance last year, amassing 8 sacks, 20 quarterback hits and 71 tackles while making first-team All-Pro for the first time since 2021. Harmon, the No. 21 overall pick back in April, had 11 tackles for loss and 5 sacks in his lone collegiate season with the Oregon Ducks.

Those three alone should make Pittsburgh’s defensive front elite this season, but others also deserve credit. Alex Highsmith is coming off a 6-sack output in just 11 regular-season games last year. Keeanu Benton’s underlying metrics (PFF pass rush grades of 80 and 75.7 in 2023 and 2024) depict him as a quality rusher, too.

Pittsburgh Defense Gives Team Clear Floor Entering 2025 Season

Death, taxes and the Steelers’ defense being a quality group. Ironically, 2024’s basic box score stats don’t reflect anything too crazy in terms of production. On the year, Pittsburgh finished 14th in tackles for loss and 16th in sacks. Nothing impressive, right? A closer look provides much more accuracy, though. There’s more to the story.

Advanced stats loved the Steelers’ defensive stalwarts. In addition to leading all of football in PFF pass rush grade (90.5), they were sixth in tackling and 11th in run defense. A glance at rbsdm.com shows a unit that was ninth in EPA/play surrendered (-0.019) and downright suffocating against the pass (0.021 dropback EPA/play was eighth).

Sure, swapping out safety Minkah Fitzpatrick for cornerback Jalen Ramsey is a risk. It’s something Heyward himself acknowledged was “bittersweet.” The Steelers also aren’t out of the woods yet with Watt’s contract situation. That’s the franchise’s biggest thing on the to-do list moving forward. A trade remains unlikely in the eyes of many.

All of that can be true. So can the fact that the Steelers’ defense looks scary once again. After winning 10 games in back-to-back seasons, it’d be hard to expect anything less now.