Think you can figure out which Steelers player we’re talking about? You’ll get five clues to figure him out in our new guessing game!
Hey Steelers fans! We’re back for another day of the Behind the Steel Curtain in-5 daily trivia game. Game instructions are at the bottom if you’re new to the game! Feel free to share your results in the comments and feedback in this Google Form.
The goal of the game is to guess the correct Steelers player with the help of up to five clues. We’ll mix in BOTH ACTIVE AND RETIRED PLAYERS. It won’t be easy to figure it out in one or two guesses, but some of you might be able to nail it.
After you correctly guess the player, you can click “Share Results” to share how you did down in the comments and on social media. We won’t go into other details about the game as we’d like your feedback on it. How it plays, what you think of it, the difficulty level, and anything else you can think of that will help us improve this game. You can provide feedback in the comments of this article, or you can fill out this Google Form.
Photo by David Rosenblum/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Scouting one of the top running backs in the 2025 NFL Draft.
Approaching the 2025 NFL Draft, we’ll be scouting as many of the top prospects that the Pittsburgh Steelers could have their eye on anywhere from Rounds 1 through 7. We’ll break down the prospects themselves, strengths and weaknesses, projected draft capital and their fit with the Steelers.
TreVeyon Henderson has had a meteoric rise up draft boards lately, and the Steelers need a running back. Is Henderson a potential fit with the black and gold?
If the Steelers are looking to add more speed to their running back room in the upcoming draft, the premier talent to target will be Ohio State’s TreVeyon Henderson.
His acceleration is fantastic and he has the speed to race by linebackers in the open field.
Henderson also has the speed to bounce runs outside and he’s lethal when defenders are flat-footed. If Arthur Smith is going to keep the toss plays in the Steelers’ playbook, Henderson would be the running back to try them with.
While Henderson’s burst is special, I do have some doubts about his overall profile. His vision and contact balance were good but not particularly special, and while he had some good moves in the games I watched, he’s not the human joystick some have made him out to be. I think he’s a good prospect; I don’t get the first-round hype.
Power and durability are also concerns. Henderson struggled with foot injuries in 2022 and 2023 and largely functioned in a running back committee when healthy (only 144 carries last season). He likely isn’t an every-down runner in the NFL. It’s far from a massive weakness, but despite his average size, Henderson simply isn’t a pile-mover.
Here he is getting stopped one-handed by Michigan’s Mason Graham.
However, he still has the quickness to dart into holes and build some momentum. He’s certainly capable of succeeding in between the tackles if there’s a crease.
Still, don’t confuse Henderson’s lack of great power with a lack of physicality. He’s an incredibly willing pass protector entering the NFL, and he’s shown off his talents as a lead blocker as well. These are the type of plays that will earn him playing time and a fan-favorite status early on:
As a receiver, Henderson didn’t see as much downfield usage as you’d hope at Ohio State, but there’s a ton of potential there. As a dump-off option, he was consistently capable of making huge plays.
Overall, Henderson fits the bill as a second-round running back who will probably go early on Day 2 to a team that’s enamored with his big-play potential. He certainly has the abilities to develop into a star at the NFL level, but his game isn’t as complete as you’d hope for an early-round running back.
Strengths
Elite burst; great speed
Polished, extremely physical pass protector
Above average receiver for the position with some untapped potential
Weaknesses
Not an every-down running back at Ohio State
Below average power
Not quite as shifty as you’d hope for a blue chip running back prospect
Henderson is capable of starring on third downs or biting off a bigger chunk as a three-down option. He has average size but above-average juice with good acceleration. He’s an average decision-maker inside and is not overly creative once confronted by the defense, but he has the pacing and subtle shiftiness to excel as an outside runner. He might be the best pass-protecting running back in this draft and is more than capable as a pass-catcher. Henderson isn’t Jahmyr Gibbs, but he can operate in a similar role for teams looking to add a more dynamic player to their running back room.
After his great freshman season, Henderson struggled to stay healthy as Ohio State’s RB1. That may limit his chances of being a bell cow in the NFL. Being in a nice rotation will keep him healthy throughout the season. … Henderson is a proven playmaker as a runner and receiver—dump-offs and screens, preferably. If an NFL team uses a committee, Henderson can handle the RB1 or lead-back role, but he will realistically be a change-of-pace runner who brings explosive playmaking ability to the offense. … GRADE: 7.4 (High-Level Backup/Potential Starter — 3rd Round). … PRO COMPARISON: Chase Brown
Ohio State Buckeyes running back TreVeyon Henderson is a productive, well-rounded runner who should offer some level of appeal to most offensive systems. Henderson offers vision, sharp-cut ability, and home run-hitting ability in a compact frame, and his passing down profile is that of an NFL contributor quickly upon his entry into the league. … Henderson offers universal scheme appeal, but his vision and quick feet will play quite well in a zone-heavy rushing system. There, he can make reactive cuts and set up second-level defenders to create creases to attack in the running game.
Henderson’s speed and burst, as well as his receiving potential, make him a great fit in a modern zone offense. Frankly, he can make plays in most schemes. If the Steelers end up with him in the second round, it would be hard to be mad.
However, Henderson doesn’t have great power and his creativity and durability come with questions. Behind the Steelers’ often-struggling offensive line, Henderson may not be an immediate game-changer. And while his speed is certainly on a different level, his overall profile reads a lot like current Steeler Jaylen Warren. Henderson would be an upgrade, but Pittsburgh would still need a bigger running back who can get the tough yardage. Selecting Henderson might not be the slam-dunk pick it seems, but I think he’ll be off the board before the Steelers have to make a decision in the second round.
TL;DR: Henderson is an exciting, speedy talent at running back who still needs to prove he can handle an every-down role. He won’t move the pile, but he offers some versatility as a pass protector and receiver out of the backfield.
What are your thoughts on Ohio State running back TreVeyon Henderson? And which draft prospects would you like to see profiled next? Let us know in the comments below!
The musical chairs game of “What quarterback will the Steelers acquire” continues today as every analyst continues throwing different names and predictions in the proverbial hat waiting to see if they’ll be correct. While the likes of Aaron Rodgers and Justin Fields seem to be the top names to watch, Ben Rolfe of Pro Football & Sports Network predicts that it will be Sam Darnold under center for Pittsburgh in 2025.
“Based on last year, it is fairly obvious that Russell Wilson and Justin Fields are not taking this team over the hump,” Rolfe said. “However, they were not blessed with the biggest talent around them, so even if the Steelers upgraded at the position, they should still consider adding someone like Chris Godwin or Keenan Allen as a reliable pass catcher. If Wilson and Fields are not coming back, then the best free agent quarterback is Sam Darnold. Playing for the Vikings last year, Darnold produced his best season, finishing as the QB12 in our QB+ metric — above both Wilson and Fields. He still needs help to elevate this team to a deep playoff run, but Darnold would allow the Steelers to remain competitive in 2025.”
Darnold had a breakout year in 2024, throwing for over 4,300 yards and 35 touchdowns, earning his first Pro Bowl nod. And while he had a terrific season, it was with one of the top play-designing head coaches in the NFL in Kevin O’Connell and a great supporting cast of Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, Aaron Jones, and a great defense.
The Steelers don’t have the offensive guru under the headset, nor do they have a cast of top-notch weapons. They can add names, sure, but those will be the risks if they add Darnold. That said, he’s shown if put in the right situation, he can succeed.
The Steelers are currently set to return their defensive linemen rotation from 2024, but it’s an aging group that will require reinforcements this offseason.
Of the linemen who played at least 100 snaps last year, just three – Keeanu Benton, DeMarvin Leal and Isaiahh Loudermilk – will be younger than 30 when the 2025 season starts. Of the same group, only Benton, Leal and Cameron Heyward are signed through 2026. Heyward will be 37 when the 2026 season starts, making retirement a serious possibility.
As a result, the Steelers are expected to take a defensive linemen early in April’s draft, per Mike DeFabo of The Athletic, especially if they move on from Larry Ogunjobi as DeFabo predicts. The veteran defensive tackle is due a $3MM roster bonus on March 15, along with a $4MM base salary for the 2025 season. Releasing him before the new league year would save $7MM in 2025 cap space with a $3.5MM dead cap hit.
Such a move would push defensive line depth further up the Steelers’ list of priorities. They have the cap space to compete for a top free agent like Osa Odighizuwa or Milton Williams, but they have been more focused on finding a starting quarterback for next season.
That could push them to use a high draft pick to add from a strong DL draft class. There could be as many as 24 starting-caliber prospects at the position, according to NFL Network’s Daniel Jeremiah (via Ryan Dunleavy of the New York Post). Such a deep class could allow the Steelers to wait until Day 2 to draft a defensive linemen, though a first-round pick seems to be in play as well.
Pittsburgh has used Day 2 picks on defensive linemen in two of the last three drafts: Benton in the second round in 2023 and Leal in the third in 2022. Barring a major addition in free agency, the team is likely to continue their pattern and spend a premium pick to solidify the short- and long-term future of their defensive line.
Think you can figure out which Steelers player we’re talking about? You’ll get five clues to figure him out in our new guessing game!
Hey Steelers fans! We’ve got a new treat for everybody. Some of you have likely seen the daily trivia game that lives in the top right corner above the fold of the site. To date, that game has been the SB Nation in-5 trivia game. Today, that changes here.
We’ve now got a Pittsburgh Steelers version of the game. The SB Nation version has been a general NFL game with active and retired players from all 32 teams featured. Moving forward, at Behind the Steel Curtain you’ll get a daily Steelers version of this game. We’ll be rotating between current Steelers and some of our old favorites and not so well-known options. You can still play the SB Nation version. You just need to go to sbnation.com, where it lives on the front page every day.
You can play the game below and share your results in the comments or on social media. Please share any and all feedback about the game, both good and bad. You can post feedback in the comments, but we also have a Google Form. We’re past the beta stage of the game, but it’s still a work in progress.
See Behind the Steel Curtain in-5 game instructions below the game.
The goal of the game is to guess the correct Steelers player with the help of up to five clues. We’ll mix in BOTH ACTIVE AND RETIRED PLAYERS. It won’t be easy to figure it out in one or two guesses, but some of you might be able to nail it.
After you correctly guess the player, you can click “Share Results” to share how you did down in the comments and on social media. We won’t go into other details about the game as we’d like your feedback on it. How it plays, what you think of it, the difficulty level, and anything else you can think of that will help us improve this game. You can provide feedback in the comments of this article, or you can fill out this Google Form.
Pittsburgh Steelers fans will all be wide awake on March 12 when the new league year begins, as they’ll wait to see who will be the team’s quarterback for the 2025 season. Will it be a returning Justin Fields, who went 4-2 as a starter with Pittsburgh last season? Will Aaron Rodgers be brought in after a 28 touchdown season with the Jets? Or will someone out of left field come into play? According to Pittsburgh sports radio host Andrew Fillipponi, the Steelers have interest in former New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones.
“There’s interest in former Giants QB Daniel Jones inside the Steelers organization,” Fillipponi posted on X. “Quote: ‘[The Steelers] could do a lot worse than Jones.’ With the belief he actually is a good fit for Arthur Smith’s offense. And Mike Tomlin’s preference for a mobile quarterback.”
Source: There’s interest in former Giants QB Daniel Jones inside the Steelers organization. Quote: “[The Steelers] could do a lot worse than Jones.” With the belief he actually is a good fit for Arthur Smith’s offense. And Mike Tomlin’s preference for a mobile quarterback. pic.twitter.com/C72bn1nPsr
Fillipponi also said the Brandon Aiyuk trade to the Steelers was a done deal last offseason, so take this with a large pinch of salt. For a team who claims to be all in on ending the eight year playoff win drought, a career-long project like Jones doesn’t exactly back that up.
Jones has a career record of 24-44-1 with 70 touchdowns and 47 interceptions in 69 career starts.
The Steelers could add a really good compliment to George Pickens.
The Pittsburgh Steelers are in need of several upgrades on the offensive side of the ball. Quarterback is the position that gets the lion’s share of the attention, but receiver isn’t far behind when it comes to the Steelers’ to-do list.
There are plenty of free agents the Steelers could target to be their potential No. 2 receiver, such as Chris Godwin, Darius Slayton, and many others. The Steelers have also been connected to San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel in a potential trade. But Samuel isn’t the only receiver the Steelers could have their eyes on in terms of a trade. NFL insider Benjamin Allbright says that Denver Broncos wide receiver Courtland Sutton is a name to watch for Pittsburgh.
“I think Pittsburgh’s looking to add a receiver, not subtract one,” Allbright said on The Big Doug and Carmi Show. “I would not be surprised if the Broncos jettison Courtland Sutton, to see Sutton and Pickens pair up on the outside there in Pittsburgh.”
A source confirmed to Behind The Steel Curtainlast year that the Steelers reached out to the Broncos both before and during the 2024 NFL Draft about acquiring Sutton, and were turned away both times. Sutton is entering the final year of his contract in Denver, so it may be in their best interest to get something in exchange for him if they don’t intent on extending him past 2025.
Pittsburgh Steelers safety DeShon Elliott made waves when he proclaimed his displeasure with the idea of the Steelers adding Aaron Rodgers to be their next quarterback. Commenting on an Instagram post about the speculation, Elliott said Rodgers could “leave his a** at the retirement home.” This made it seem pretty clear that the Steelers breakout star defender was against bringing in the four-time MVP. However, a recent photo may say otherwise.
Rodgers and Elliott took a photo together, as posted by Proactive Sports Performance with the caption “Who retires first?” Rodgers was smiling, pointing at Elliott while Elliott himself was smiling with two thumbs up. With context, perhaps his original comment was more of a rib on a friend than anything serious.
Should that be the case, it certainly changes how many would look at the possibility of Rodgers coming to Pittsburgh – especially if reports of there being mutual interest between Justin Fields and the New York Jets are true.
As the Steelers navigate their quarterback options ahead of the offseason, there’s been an increasing sentiment that they prefer to keep Justin Fields over Russell Wilson. If that’s the case, then the organization may be in luck, as it sounds like the free agent is also interested in sticking with Pittsburgh. However, that would require some concessions.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler writes that Fields joins the Steelers in being interested in a new contract. However, the writer cautions that the QB would need at least “a shot” at being the team’s starter.
Following an offseason trade from the Bears to the Steelers, Fields started each of Pittsburgh’s first six games. While it was a brief cameo, it was one of the best showings of the QB’s career, as the former first-round pick tossed five touchdowns vs. one interception, added another five scores on the ground, and guided his team to a 4-2 record. Once Wilson returned, Fields only got into 13 more snaps for the rest of the season.
Still, with Wilson being at the helm for the team’s five-game losing streak to end the year, there’s been growing support for the team to retain Fields instead of his veteran teammate. During an appearance on 93.7 The Fan, Mark Kaboly of The Athletic continued to beat that drum, noting that Fields remains the team’s top option at the position (via Matthew Marczi of Steelers Depot).
Wilson would still be positioned as the team’s “Plan B,” and the organization may have to pivot to the older player if Fields is priced out of Pittsburgh. Kaboly estimated a two-year offer for Fields worth around $25MM to $30MM, with the reporter noting that the Steelers may have to overpay to make sure the player doesn’t truly test free agency.
The Steelers and Rodgers look more like a potential pairing by the day
The Pittsburgh Steelers and Aaron Rodgers seem to be getting connected by many media members and fans alike. The Steelers need a quarterback, and Rodgers needs a new home for the 2025 season. Rodgers’ tenure with the New York Jets obviously didn’t go as planned, as New York went 5-12 last season in his one full season with the team. And while many fans are completely against adding the 41 year-old, at least one Steelers player seems up to it.
Wide receiver George Pickens was asked about his dream teammate, and he named Aaron Rodgers.
“My dream teammate would probably be Aaron Rodgers,” Pickens said. “Aaron Rodgers or like Ed Reed.”
When asked about a future teammate one of George Picken’s answer was Aaron Rodgers. pic.twitter.com/NVhYZhUeKl
Rodgers had a good individual season in 2024, totaling 28 touchdowns to 11 interceptions. His age, though, is off-putting to many who want the Steelers to try and find a quarterback for the long-term future. Rodgers is better than any quarterback the Steelers had a season ago, but would it be worth bringing him in for a maximum of two years? Some would argue no.
