Safety Keanu Neal brings experience, versatility to ever-changing Steelers secondary

Two weeks into NFL free agency, and Keanu Neal was still looking for a home.

A former first-round pick and eighth-year veteran, Neal was out of work and looking for a team that could use a hard-nosed safety and player capable of moving into a linebacker role in subpackage situations.

Enter the Steelers.

After losing strong safety Terrell Edmunds to free agency, the Steelers sought a replacement even though they had Damontae Kazee waiting in the wings. Given the team’s success at using a three-safety package in the second half of the season, they wanted another veteran for their rotation.

“They saw a role for me here, and I wanted to be a part of it, part of this organization,” Neal said last week at organized team activities. “The locker room is great, the coaches have been awesome. It was kind of a no-brainer for me.”

Neal signed a two-year, $4.25 million contract with the Steelers on March 30, providing perhaps another missing piece to a secondary that also lost cornerbacks Cameron Sutton, Ahkello Witherspoon and Arthur Maulet in the offseason.

Coach Mike Tomlin has a history of infusing former No. 1 draft picks into his defense, and Neal and cornerback Patrick Peterson are the latest such examples added to a defense that includes first-rounders Cameron Heyward, T.J. Watt and Minkah Fitzpatrick.

The No. 17 overall pick of the Atlanta Falcons in 2016, Neal has become a bit of a football nomad. The Steelers are his fourth team in as many seasons. He left the Falcons after the 2020 season and spent a year each in Dallas and Tampa Bay.

Neal’s reputation followed him to each destination. He apparently packs a wallop into his 6-foot, 211-pound frame.

“He was always a big-hitter type of guy,” Peterson said. “A guy who imposes his will and inflicts pain on receivers.”

It began in 2016, Neal’s rookie season, when he was fined $24,309 for a hit on Philadelphia receiver Jordan Matthews. Three years later, he was docked $28,075 for a hit that concussed Washington tight end Jordan Reed.

“That’s definitely something I’ve built over the time I’ve played in the league,” said Neal, who was elected to the Pro Bowl in 2017. “I’m big on physicality. That’s part of my game. I love that piece and, yeah, that’s something I definitely embrace.”

The Steelers plan to use Neal’s physicality at various spots of the defense. In his year with the Cowboys, Neal was moved to inside linebacker, and he admitted the Steelers have used him some in the dime linebacker spot in offseason practices.

Neal also has taken his share of snaps — as has Kazee — at strong safety.

“I’ve been moving around quite a bit,” he said. “Down in the box, I’ve been in the deep part of the field. Getting a feel for each aspect has been good. Here, they are about having chess pieces to move around. I’m not the only one doing that, and it’s good to learn that way of playing.”

All Neal has to do is remain healthy. He played every game last season in Tampa Bay, starting eight, and had 63 tackles, a career-high five quarterback hits and one interception. But he also played just four games combined over the 2018-19 seasons because of injuries.

An injury to Kazee that sidelined him for the first half of the 2022 season is what kept the Steelers from unveiling their three-safety package sooner. It’s a way for the defense to combat two tight-end sets.

“He’s a physical presence that you can play at different positions,” Peterson said. “He’s a guy that played a ton of football that can bring a lot to the secondary. We know he’s more than capable of doing that. We’re excited to have him as a safety on this team and someone who can add depth and experience to our room.”