Steelers A to Z: Much-traveled Esezi Otomewo seeking home on defensive line
Editor’s note: From now until reporting day to training camp at Saint Vincent College, TribLive is running through the Pittsburgh Steelers’ 90-man roster, looking at each player and assessing his outlook for the 2025 season. The breakdown will run in alphabetical order with at least two players each day between June 12 and July 23. Contract data courtesy spotrac.com.
DT ESEZI OTOMEWO
Experience/age: Third season, 26 years old
Contract status: $1.03 million cap hit if he makes the team, will become a restricted free agent in 2026
The past: A 6-foot-5, 282-pound defensive lineman, Otomewo is with his third team since entering the NFL in 2022. He spent the previous two seasons in Jacksonville and was drafted by the Minnesota Vikings in the fifth round of the 2022 draft.
Otomewo has nine games of NFL experience, appearing in the final five games of his rookie season with the Vikings. He was on Jacksonville’s practice squad in 2023 and played in four games last year in the first half of the season. Two of those games were starts.
Otomewo had a fumble recovery and two quarterback hits in his limited playing time with the Jaguars. He did not see any action after Week 6.
Former #Gophers DE Esezi Otomewo (@EseziOtomewo) preseason stats with the Jaguars (2 gms)
????⬛43 snaps
????⬛3 sacks
????⬛5 total tackles
????⬛83.7 PFF pass rush gradeStill only 25 years old.
— Tony Liebert (@TonyLiebert) August 18, 2024
2025 outlook: The Steelers signed Otomewo about a week into free agency to provide depth on the defensive front. That was before the Steelers drafted Derrick Harmon in the first round and Yahya Black in the fifth, increasing the competition for a roster spot.
Otomewo has experience playing defensive end as well as tackle, and he will have to show that versatility if he hopes to earn a spot on the 53-man roster.
Joe Rutter is a TribLive reporter who has covered the Pittsburgh Steelers since the 2016 season. A graduate of Greensburg Salem High School and Point Park, he is in his fifth decade covering sports for the Trib. He can be reached at jrutter@triblive.com.
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