Tim Benz: Steelers defensive line a 'sneaky good' spot for competition at training camp

Coming into the Steelers 2023 training camp, there were many storylines to track.

• Who would win the left tackle job on offense?

• Could all those new faces in the secondary come together on defense?

• Will the offense become more explosive with Kenny Pickett at the helm in his second season?

But a sneaky good competition for roster spots and playing time has developed along the defensive line.

We all knew coming into training camp that Cameron Heyward and Larry Ogunjobi would be the starters at defensive end in the base 3-4 and the primary inside players in passing subpackage looks.

But who becomes their primary backups and who gets the most snaps at nose tackle are questions to be answered as the season goes along. The competition to figure that out at Saint Vincent College has been intense.

It’s a question that head coach Mike Tomlin, general manager Omar Khan and assistant GM Andy Weidel have created for themselves.

A creation they were happy to make.

Because it means that they’ve bolstered their options at that position much more than they had at their disposal a year ago.

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By drafting Wisconsin’s Keeanu Benton in the second round and signing the likes of free agent veterans Armon Watts, Breiden Fehoko and Manny Jones, the Steelers have added to a crowded defensive line room. It already included young, returning players such as Montravius Adams and Jonathan Marshall on the nose and Isaiahh Loudermilk and DeMarvin Leal on the ends.

“A lot of them are as advertised from what we saw on tape, what we knew about them coming in,” Weidel said Wednesday. “You’re watching them adjust to the culture, and I think you’re seeing a seamless adjustment in terms of what the player is coming in.”

In terms of the Steelers’ depth chart currently posted on their website, Adams is listed as the starting nose between Heyward and Ogunjobi, followed by Fehoko, Benton and Marshall. Leal and Loudermilk are the first two subs at end, with Watts and Jones on the third team.

But that pecking order and those positions are far from written in stone.

“We feel really good about (having added) NFL-capable guys at that position,” Tomlin said of the defensive line this week. “The competition is going to be stiff. Particularly how things play out in-stadium is going to be a major component of it. We’ve largely been pleased with the progress of that collective.”

The versatility of the group has made the dynamic of who will make the team and dress on game days particularly interesting. Defensive line coach Karl Dunbar says Watts is capable of playing both nose and end, with good interior rush skills. Leal has played everywhere along the line and outside linebacker in camp. Loudermilk has seen snaps at both end and OLB.

“It’s always good when you have a room full of competition. You can’t run from it. Competition always brings out the best in one another,” Watts said last week.

Meanwhile, Benton has shown highlight flashes that could make him worthy of moving up to a starting role at nose and a subpackage backup to both Heyward and Ogunjobi when the team goes to nickel or dime.

Think Javon Hargrave when he was on his entry-level contract in Pittsburgh — only a few pounds heavier and a few inches taller.

“He’s big and explosive. That’s what I love about him,” Dunbar said after practice Wednesday. “I was so excited when he was still there (in the second round of this year’s draft) when we had a chance to take him. If you watch practice, you see him run. You see him use his hands. You see him open and close his hips. When you’ve got a big guy who can do that, you can do a lot of things with him.”

Adams and Fehoko seem to be more anchored into their nose tackle positions, which may make them more expendable or at least less likely to start on game day. But Fehoko’s cap hit is just $940,000. Adams is at $3.23 million, with a $732,500 dead cap charge. Yet Adams is still atop the depth chart, and Fehoko has drawn consistently good reviews in his run game work.

“Fehoko, you can’t move that sucker out of the A-gap,” Dunbar said.

Regardless of who makes the roster and who gets a helmet on Sundays along the defensive front, one agenda is clear based on how the Steelers have layered their defensive line room. The coaching staff wants higher-quality reps from players when Ogunjobi and Heyward are either injured or need a break during long drives.

“Those (coaches) can trust that if Cam needs a spell, if ‘Larry O’ needs a spell … it’s good to see that there is quality depth behind the starters and future first-ballot Hall of Famers we have now,” Fehoko said.

Benton has flashed enough that I won’t be surprised if he is getting the third-most snaps after Heyward and Ogunjobi by mid-season. Maybe fourth if you count Leal, but I bet he gets some burn at OLB too.

From there, don’t be surprised if Fehoko carves out a role as the chief run-stopper on the nose unless the coaches feel Adams’ ability to get upfield is more valuable. As far as another guy on the end, it probably comes down to who plays better in the preseason between Watts and Loudermilk. Then it’s a weekly game plan decision on a week-to-week basis as to who gets a helmet and who gets scratched.

Or who finds themselves on the practice squad, traded or looking for work as a free agent.

Listen: Tim Benz and Breiden Fehoko discuss position battles along the defensive line