The Pittsburgh Steelers have been fortunate enough to bring in a few players that grew up in the city. The most notable in recent years has been Joey Porter Jr. and Jaquan Brisker. Signing star players that grew up rooting for the Steelers is such a great thing to have in the locker room and for fans to enjoy. A hometown hero story is such a awesome storyline for an organization and Pittsburgh has yet another one after the 2026 NFL Draft.
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Steelers' Joey Porter Jr. arrives for the 2026 offseason workouts with teammate Jaquan Brisker.
In the seventh round, the front office took Eli Heidenreich out of Navy. He went to Mount Lebanon High School and now gets to play in Pittsburgh once again. While he wasn't the star in the first round that everyone has all of their attention on, he still has a shot to make an underrated impact to the franchise, especially on special teams. In fact, that might be the only way he can make the roster with how this team is shaking up through the offseason.
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Steelers running back Eli Heidenreich on the field during rookie minicamp in 2026.
Heidenreich was more of a role player at Navy than a star on the field. He could fit the offense as a specialist and only appeared a handful of times in games, but with the additions at receiver and running back, it will be difficult to find a way on the field. To make the roster, he might need to get comfortable on special teams. The returning job might go to Kaden Wetjen, so joining Ben Skowronek in the gunner role might make some sense.
However he does it, special teams is going to be where he needs to make an impact to stay with in Pittsburgh, according to Steelers insider Christopher Carter on 93.7 The Fan. He talked about the role Heidenreich may play and what's going to help him get on the roster.
"I really think the place where Eli Heidenreich needs to make his bed for the Steelers is on special teams," Carter stated. "Whether it's being a returner, whether it's being a gunner, whether it's being a cover, whatever it is, he needs to make sure that he is useful on multiple roles on special teams."
Along with being a Swiss Army Knife through different positions, Carter acknowledged some other areas that Heidenreich needs to stand out. One of those areas is as a pass blocker at running back. Jaylen Warren has done very well in that regard over the years, but Kaleb Johnson struggled with that. Emerging as a solid pass blocker would really help his case in getting on the field. That's a very valuable key to the offense as Warren and Rico Dowdle will likely take the bulk of reps.
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Steelers running backs Jaylen Warren and Kaleb Johnson stand side by side one another during a training camp practice in Latrobe, PA.
Additionally, his ability to catch balls out of the backfield will play a massive role as well. Aaron Rodgers isn't afraid to check down to the running back and without Kenneth Gainwell, someone else will need to step up into that role. It will likely be Dowdle, but anything can happen on that front.
While all of those parts of his game need to stand out to make the roster, the key will be effectiveness on special teams. Big plays on kickoff, good coverage at gunner, or splash runs off of returning. He has to standout in some regard to make the roster. Keeping a hometown guy would be great, but the Steelers can't just roster him because of where he came from, which is the point that Carter was trying to make.
Steelers' Eli Heidenreich Must Make Early Impact On Special Teams
It would be an awesome story for the season to have Heidenreich make an impact, but he has to find a way to stand out from others. With three running backs ahead of him and a deep receiving core, special teams appears to be where he needs to shine to stay on his hometown team.
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