Steelers' Mike Tomlin Reveals Exactly How Derrick Harmon Will Best Be Unleashed In Pittsburgh: "Don't Think Nose Is His Game"

With the 21st overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, the Pittsburgh Steelers selected defensive lineman, Derrick Harmon. In the Steel City, Harmon will bolster the trenches and look to potentially take up the mantle from an aging Cam Heyward. Harmon will also play alongside Keeanu Benton, another young player who promises to carry Pittsburgh's defense into the future. During the post-Round 1 selection presser on Thursday, Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin and General Manager Omar Khan were asked how they saw Harmon fitting into the Steelers' current defensive lineup. Tomlin gave a glowing review of the young defensive player, highlighting his flexibility to excel at many different positions.

At the presser, Tomlin was asked what position he sees Harmon thriving in. When asked if Harmon would play nose tackle, it was the only position along the defensive line that Tomlin said Harmon wasn't likely to play.

"I don't think nose is his game," said Tomlin. "But the rush component, some of those things, certainly."

Tomlin was also asked how he saw Harmon playing alongside Benton.

"I think we've got two quality young players that hopefully are going to play a long time together and have a great deal of success," said Tomlin. "Both guys are versatile. Both guys are stout against the run. Both guys are pass-rush capable. We'll sort some of the details out once we get them on the grass and begin the process of team development for 2025."

If Harmon dominates in as many fields as Tomlin says he will, then the rookie from the University of Oregon will prove to be an asset in Pittsburgh.

Tomlin also said that he anticipated Harmon and Heyward would work well together. Heyward, a veteran who is looked up to by many younger Steelers, played lights out in the 2024 season. However, it's unclear how many more years Heyward has where he will be able to play at such a high level. Bolstering the team's defense with young talent like Harmon is crucial to ensuring the long-term success of Pittsburgh's trenches.

"I've seen Derrick dominate in terms of the pass rush from the A gap to the B gap," said Tomlin. "We've all been looking at Cam do that for a long period of time. So I think we will have great flexibility there in terms of how we choose to deploy those guys."

It's unclear how high a ceiling Harmon has. As of right now, the young player is far from the next Heyward, but he will look to hone his skills in Pittsburgh. There is a risk involved with every draft pick, as a team can never be totally sure what a young player will amount to. Regardless of how Harmon's career unfolds, the Steelers have shown that the team is committed to giving their trenches what they need to thrive long into the future.

Steelers Made A Safe Investment With The Team's First-Round Pick

Before the draft, much of the media attention surrounding the Steelers was concerning the drama at the quarterback position. Particularly, the team's inability to sign veteran quarterback Aaron Rodgers. Despite the dire situation that the Steelers find their quarterback room in, the defensive line consistently ranked as at least the team's second biggest issue. 

The Steelers may have been under additional pressure to sign a quarterback due to the signal-caller-sized hole in the team's roster. However, the team took the safer option and invested in their defense. This year's draft class is notoriously thin on quarterback talent, and the Steelers brass may have figured that out as well early in the evaluation process. It likely wouldn't have been worth using the 21st overall draft pick to take a prospect that couldn't be a franchise quarterback.

How well do you think Harmon's versatility will translate when playing with the Steelers? Let us know in the comments below!

#SteelerNation