Author: Ryan Parish

Which players will most impact the Steelers success this year? And Ryland and Ryan review Alex Highsmith’s 2024 performance

The long wait for football is nearly over, Steelers Nation. As July begins to fade into August, we find ourselves just 10 days away from the Steelers’ first preseason action. Pittsburgh will face off against Jacksonville on Aug. 9, and the season opener against the Jets on Sept. 7 will be here before we know it.

In the meantime, our review of 2024 continues this week: a look at the Steelers’ pass rush with the Cal Naughton Jr. to T.J. Watt’s Ricky Bobby: Alex Highsmith. But first, we predict which players could decide the Steelers’ season.

Steelers X-factors

While it’s still too early to know exactly how the Steelers roster will shake out in 2025, it’s safe to assume that the majority of the roster is currently under contract and attending training camp in Latrobe. A few players might be added after teams trim down to 53 on Aug. 26, but such additions are difficult to predict, and the core of the team is already in place.

With that in mind, it’s time for R&R’s annual predictions about which players will matter the most for the upcoming season. That’s right, we’re talking X-factors!

For this exercise, we define an “X-factor” as a player (not a coach) who will contribute significantly to the team’s success — or lack of it — for the 2025 season. As such, this player might not necessarily be a star.

For example, we all know how important T.J. Watt and Cam Heyward are to the defense. We won’t waste your time telling you something you already know. However, the players we choose must also be expected to receive enough playing time to consistently influence the outcomes of games.

We’ll also be excluding quarterbacks and Broderick Jones from our answers. We believe our readers are smart enough to know how important quarterback play is, and we also don’t think you need another article hand-wringing about the Steelers’ embattled young tackle. Those answers are too easy, and we want to give you something more entertaining to discuss. So with that, let’s dive in.

RP:

Offense — Kaleb Johnson

Barry Reeger-Imagn Images

All offseason, you’ve been hearing that Kaleb Johnson is a perfect scheme fit for the Steelers. Now, with some training camp practices under his belt and the pads finally on, the early reviews from camp are trending positive for the rookie running back. The Steelers coaching staff has offered some praise while also hinting that they still want Johnson to earn opportunities.

I, for one, have a hard time envisioning a successful season for the offense where Johnson isn’t a significant part of it.

Of course, there are still plenty of questions about how the Steelers’ run-heavy offense will mesh with Aaron Rodgers. Last year, the Steelers ran the ball at the fourth-highest rate (49.3%), while Rodgers and the Jets were fourth-highest (64.1%) in passing. Something will have to give.

Still, in an ideal world, the Steelers and Rodgers would try to replicate some of the magic from his 2020 MVP season. That year, Rodgers threw 48 touchdowns, yet the Packers had the seventh-highest rush rate (44.7%). Aaron Jones racked up over 1,104 yards rushing and nine touchdowns, while Jamaal Williams pitched in another 505 yards and two scores on the ground. Jones (63) and Williams (35) combined for 98 targets as well, and last season Rodgers targeted running backs 115 times.

Running back is going to be important for this offense. During his time in Pittsburgh, Najee Harris’ was a true high-volume bellcow. Combining his rush attempts and targets for each season, Harris totaled 401, 325, 293, and 311 in his four seasons with the Steelers.

Even if Jaylen Warren is your presumptive top back on the depth chart, the Steelers are unlikely to give Warren a workload as big as his former running mate’s. In his three year career, Warren’s combined rush and target totals have been 110, 223, and then 167 last year when he managed to play in 15 games but was sidelined or limited with injury in many of them.

Even if he stays healthy, Warren is going to share the workload. He’s a good player, but perhaps one that is at his best being the 1B to another back’s 1A.

Johnson has the size to carry a heavier load and the breakaway ability to create explosive plays for the offense. The latter especially could help him succeed where Harris often struggled, especially if the offensive line play remains inconsistent.

If Johnson can have a strong rookie season, the Steelers might have a dangerous enough offense to finally make some noise in the playoffs. If he struggles instead, we might be in for another year of frustration.

Defense — Juan Thornhill

Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images

Much like the offense, the Steelers’ defense underwent some big changes this offseason, and yet the core of the defense is mostly the same. Sure, versatile defensive back Minkah Fitzpatrick is gone, but the Steelers have brought in Jalen Ramsey, who arguably is an even more versatile defender for coordinator Teryl Austin to play with.

Gone too is Donte Jackson, but the Steelers have newcomers Darius Slay and Brandin Echols, as well as third-year corner Cory Trice Jr., to step into that role. Whether it’s just one of them or some combination of the three, the Steelers have reason to believe they can get similar play as they got in 2024 from the corner opposite Joey Porter Jr. on the outside. And if all else fails, Ramsey can play outside and Echols or Beanie Bishop Jr. can fill in at nickel.

I nearly selected another rookie here in Derrick Harmon, but with the Steelers throwing several resources towards stopping the run, and still maintaining a solid stable of pass rushers, I finally landed on safety Juan Thornhill as the new starter who best fits our criteria for X-factor.

Fitzpatrick’s reputation as a playmaker got him a lot of grief from Steelers fans over the last two seasons when he only totaled one interception. In a way that plays into Thornhill’s favor, himself failing to record an interception the past two seasons in Cleveland. Thornhill has just eight interceptions during his six-year career. Since Thornhill isn’t expected to generate a high amount of interceptions, he likely will get less scrutiny than Fitzpatrick did, in that regard.

But where Fitzpatrick will be missed is as a leader and communicator. On multiple occasions the Steelers asked Fitzpatrick to don the green dot for the defense over the years, and he was a key figure in communicating the Steelers coverages on the back end.

Thornhill isn’t as versatile as Fitzpatrick, and should be mainly tasked with holding down the back end of the defense. Fellow starting safety DeShon Elliott is the more effective box safety and should play more towards the line of scrimmage, while Thornhill has played the majority of his career snaps at free safety, primarily in the post/centerfield role.

Thornhill has excelled in coverage at times, especially during his initial run with the Kansas City Chiefs, which included two Super Bowl titles. Thornhill saw his overall quality of play diminish the past two seasons in Cleveland, partially due to injury.

Last season was particularly rough for Thornhill as his worst single-season marks in missed tackle rate (22.6%) and average passer rating allowed (137.2), as well as his second-worst finishes in completion percentage allowed (68.4%) and yards per reception (15.1).

If Thornhill can return to form and help prevent explosive plays down the field, he will be a key piece of the puzzle on defense. However, if he continues to struggle as a tackler and sees his coverage abilities diminish, the Steelers could be faced with similar coverage problems they had down the stretch of last season.

RB:

Offense — RT Troy Fautanu

Photo by Brooke Sutton/Getty Images

Left tackle Broderick Jones is off the table as he’s a bit too obvious a choice. So I went for the next best thing: the Steelers’ unproven tackle on the other side of the line.

Fautanu feels like less of a question mark than Jones headed into the new season, probably because the former looked incredibly promising in his 55 offensive snaps last season.

But read that again: just 55 snaps. There’s a reason why Fautanu is an X-factor, not a bona fide strength, entering the preseason.

I’ll leave the in-depth analysis to the article linked above. Instead, I’ll focus on the what-ifs.

If Fautanu works out, the Steelers offense isn’t saved, but it’s in good shape: Two high-quality O-linemen in Fautanu and Zach Frazier on rookie deals. That’s a foundation that helps the team’s win-now goals and future franchise quarterback aspirations.

And in the present, a strong right side of the line in Frazier-Mason McCormick-Fautanu could boost what was a horribly inefficient running game last year. As much as I agree with Ryan’s point that Kaleb Johnson is an X-factor for 2025, even at his best the running back doesn’t have the jukebox ability to consistently create behind bad blocking up front.

But if the Fautanu pick doesn’t work out, Pittsburgh is in dire straits. And it’s not necessarily that he could become a bust due to poor play — rather, Fautanu’s pre-draft knee concerns are widely seen as the reason why he fell to Pittsburgh in the first place. And sure enough, a knee injury eliminated most of his rookie season. His longevity is very much a question.

If those worries become reality, the initial two first-round picks of Omar Khan’s tenure as general manager — both part of an offensive line rebuild that cost a fortune of premium draft capital — are likely down the drain. Good luck establishing an Arthur Smith run game, or protecting 2026’s expected rookie quarterback.

Overshadowed by Broderick Jones’ make-or-break status, it’s easy to forget just how much of an X-factor Fautanu is ahead of what’s essentially his true rookie season.

Defense — LB Patrick Queen

Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images

Ryan’s choice of Juan Thornhill would be mine as well, but there are a few other X-factors on the Pittsburgh defense worth highlighting: namely, inside linebacker Patrick Queen.

The thing is, I’m not at all worried that this Steeler defense might be bad in 2024. Whether or not they’ll be elite is the bigger question, and no player exemplifies that more than Queen.

Queen — currently the seventh-highest paid off-ball linebacker in the NFL — had a rough start to his 2024 for the Steelers, but ahead of the new season he vowed to return to the form that landed him that contract in the first place.

The Steelers have elite talent and depth on two of the three levels of the defense: T.J. Watt and co. on the defensive line, and Jalen Ramsey and co. in the secondary. At middle linebacker? The rotation of Queen, Payton Wilson, Malik Harrison, and Cole Holcomb looks promisingly deep, but Queen, even at his best last season, wasn’t exactly elite.

But like many on the Steeler defense, he’s getting paid like he is.

Queen was one of two Steelers (Minkah Fitzpatrick was the other) to play over 90% of the team’s defensive snaps in 2024. In fact, both played over 99%. A true every-down player, Queen is by definition one of the more important Pittsburgh defenders heading into the new season.

With Wilson expected to take on a bigger role in 2025, Queen will have to be more sound and aggressive coming downhill to supplement the youngster’s run-and-hit playing style. Queen struggled at times getting off blocks last year — at 232 pounds, that’ll never be a true strength of his. But there’s reason to hope for improvement, especially with what should be an improved defensive line in front of him.

Where Queen did look above-average last year was in pass coverage, and that’ll be an essential component of his 2025 success as well. With Jalen Ramsey in the fold, Pittsburgh has every reason to try some more exotic coverage looks, and having a linebacker who won’t look lost in space will be a big part of that.

Surrounded by a lot of talent of defense, Queen doesn’t have to be a world-beater in 2025. But if he can turn in a year that puts him in consideration for another second-team All-Pro nod, that might be the piece that solidifies the Steeler defense as a top-five unit.

Steelers in review: Alex Highsmith

RB: As always, I’ll start off with a quick recap of the player’s career so far.

Highsmith was drafted in the third round by the Steelers in 2020, becoming a full-time starter in 2021 after Bud Dupree left Pittsburgh in free agency. That season, Highsmith logged six sacks and a career-high 74 total tackles.

While already considered a good player, Highsmith’s breakout came in 2022. He notched 14.5 sacks, good enough for sixth in the NFL, as T.J. Watt dealt with injuries.

In 2023, Highsmith signed a four-year, $68 million deal that will keep him in Pittsburgh through 2027. Currently, his $17 million average per year is the 20th highest at his position. His ranking will continue to drop as the edge rusher market skyrockets in value.

Since that 2022 season, Highsmith hasn’t been able to return to double-digit sack form, logging seven in 2023 and six in 2024. However, he played in just 11 games last season, hurting his overall production.

However, the tape shows a player who was more impactful than the box score might show.

Sacks get pass-rushers paid, which is why I focused on them in the intro. But for my half of the analysis, I’ll be looking at what Highsmith brings to the table as a run defender. Spoiler alert: he’s very good.

Highsmith was largely elite as a run defender last year. That’s based on my own observations from the tape — and keep in mind, I only watch the player’s most recent games to form my evaluations. Highsmith still looked great against the run, even throughout the Pittsburgh defense’s late-season collapse in 2024.

And for what it’s worth, PFF agrees, grading Highsmith as the 10th-best edge rusher in the league last season (out of 211) against the run. Ryan will get into it later, but Highsmith ranked even higher as a pass rusher.

Again, the production may not always make it obvious, but Highsmith remains worth his expensive contract.

For starters, Highsmith does the basics of defending the run very well. Priority No. 1 is setting the edge — it’s not flashy, but Highsmith is incredibly stout and disciplined in that role.

Listed at 242 pounds on the Steelers website, he’s going to have a size disadvantage against NFL offensive tackles, but his play strength stands out. You won’t see him losing ground in one-on-ones.

Highsmith’s abilities really shine against tight ends, who he faced a lot as an edge defender.

He would often move inside from his wide-9 stance when on the strong side of the field. Highsmith has the power to handle tight ends even without momentum, and he consistently uses his hands to keep his chest free and control the blocker, defending the gaps on either side.

Highsmith stands out as a remarkably complete player: a good overall strength profile, good technique, and the quickness to shoot gaps. He might not have a single dominant trait, but there’s no Achilles’ heel in his run defense, either.

Highsmith has quite the arsenal of pass-rush chops, which Ryan will get into below. However, keep in mind that those also help him make stops when it’s a run play:

Of course, Highsmith wasn’t perfect in 2024, but the lowlights tended to be one-off plays rather than cut-up-worthy trends.

For instance, here’s Highsmith trying to rip inside when he has outside contain against the Eagles. Jordan Mailata and Saquon Barkley happen to be very good at their jobs, however, and they make Highsmith pay. He gives a “my bad” chest tap towards the sideline after the play, and had a generally great day against Philadelphia otherwise.

Like the rest of the Steelers’ defense though, he had a few more missteps than usual against the Baltimore Ravens — especially in Pittsburgh’s brutal Wild Card loss.

Some less-than flattering reps came when he chased the wrong runner on one of Baltimore’s read-option plays. But it’s hard to mark any as a negative as I don’t know what his assignments were from play-to-play.

In fact, he was often the read defender, meaning Lamar Jackson’s job was to take the ball in whatever direction Highsmith didn’t go. Generally, I’d put the blame for big gains from these plays on the rest of the defense.

Highsmith did amass some missed tackles against Baltimore, with some instances being far worse than others. Even on those plays, he still tended to do a good job redirecting the run. There just aren’t many plays from his 2024 where he loses badly.

But I’ll finish on a high note as it’s important not to fixate on a couple of hand-picked underwhelming reps from an otherwise stellar year of run defense.

Specifically, even after his big-money contract, Highsmith is clearly a high-effort defender.

As expected, he has a handful of highlights chasing down ball-carriers from the backside of a run:

More impressively, he stays in pursuit through the whistle.

With a more talented interior defensive line and hopefully improved inside linebacker play this upcoming season, I have high expectations for Highsmith. He may be the second fiddle to T.J. Watt, but he’s absolutely the high-end OLB2 the Steelers are paying him to be.

RP: Bottom line coming out of this film review: Alex Highsmith is an awesome player. He may not have some of the freaky physical measurements or mindblowing athletic testing that pundits love to drool over, but the results speak for themselves.

Despite missing six games in 2024, Highsmith made his impact felt whenever he was on the field. PFF graded Highsmith as the eighth-best pass rushing grade among edge rushers and charted him with the 19th highest pass rush win percentage (17.4%). PFF also has a stat called “Pass Rushing Productivity” that combines sacks, hits and hurries, then compares those to how often the player rushed the passer. Highsmith’s score (10.2) was tied for 10th best.

So how does Highsmith win?

For starters, one of his favorite moves is the infamous ghost move. A move that Von Miller has been credited with developing, the technique involves the pass rusher faking an inside punch to get the offensive lineman to punch and be caught off balance. If done right, the pass rusher is then able to dip and rip under the lineman’s punch, and then use a combination of leverage, bend and closing speed to round the corner and get to the passer.

But that is far from the only move in Highsmith’s bag. While the ghost move is a favorite — as seen again in the first two clips below — Highsmith has shown a ridiculous spin move, a sick crossover move (as seen in the Ravens clip), and the ability to bull rush and slip from the blocker.

The Steelers also like to use Highsmith on twists and loops. He doesn’t always have the speed to get through traffic, but when it works, it’s a thing of beauty.

Highsmith does have his losses on tape, but so does every pass rusher. He can be taken out of plays by double teams, but does not face many with T.J. Watt on the opposite side. Sometimes he plays a little high. If an offense uses a quick passing scheme — like in the games against the Chiefs and Eagles — it can mitigate his effectiveness, but that’s true of most pass rushes.

But all in all, Highsmith is a lunchpail guy. He isn’t the flashiest, but he puts his head down and gets to work. With T.J. Watt drawing so much attention from defenses, it’s critical for the Steelers’ second edge rusher to be better than average. Highsmith does that consistently, and against the opposing team’s left tackle, often a team’s best lineman.

The Steelers are lucky to have Alex Highsmith. If he can remain healthy, the Steelers will once again threaten to have the best pass rush in the league.

Join in on Steelers R&R by sharing your takes on this week’s topics. Who are your Steelers X-factors for 2025? And what are your thoughts on Alex Highsmith? Let us know in the comments! Feel free to pitch future questions in the comment section or on Twitter/X: tag @_Ryland_B or @RyanParishMedia, or email us at steelersreadnreact@gmail.com.