Tre Norwood already making an impact, has look of rare Steelers’ 7th-round find

For every Brett Keisel, there has been an Antonio Dingle and a LaVar Glover.

For every Kelvin Beachum or Carlos Emmons, there were seemingly three Angel Rubios.

An examination of Pittsburgh Steelers seventh-round picks over the past three decades reveals an unkind history of unearthing hidden gems. For the first time in almost a decade, though, the Steelers seem to have hit on a pick in the final round of the draft with Tre Norwood.

“Tre’s been doing well,” Steelers secondary coach Teryl Austin said this past week. “He gets a little better with more experience. Really sharp player, so you don’t see him making the same mistakes twice, which is good.

“He’s been able to carve out that niche early with us, and it’ll keep growing.”

Norwood started the opener at the Buffalo Bills, becoming the first Steelers rookie seventh-round pick to start the first game of his rookie season since the draft was modified to make the seventh round the final round in 1994.

Through just six games this season, the 179 defensive snaps Norwood has played are the most for any seventh-round rookie over an entire season (excluding special teams) for the Steelers since 2012, when offensive tackle Kelvin Beachum and tight end David Paulsen contributed to the offense as rookies.

It’s not even Halloween, and Norwood already has played more snaps from scrimmage as a rookie than the past nine Steelers seventh-round picks combined (155).

“(Norwood) has really come a long way,” defensive coordinator Keith Butler said. “Very smart young man. Takes coaching and teaching very well. Tries to do what you ask him to do. I’m glad we got him.”

In the sub-package world of modern pro football, #Steelers seventh-round pick Tre Norwood could see work on defense in his debut. https://t.co/IfSQu86a7F

— Tribune-ReviewSports (@TribSports) September 12, 2021

When the Steelers got their man with the 245th overall pick in April, Norwood had the atypical honor of his selection being announced by his new coach. While that was likely a coincidence (it probably was pre-determined that Mike Tomlin was to appear via Zoom to announce that particular pick on live television), what made Norwood unique was Tomlin spoke with glee in naming Norwood not by position but as “Swiss Army Knife/utility back/safety.”

That’s proven prescient. Norwood quickly has shown he can handle deployment as a slot cornerback, deep free safety and a hybrid in-the-box “dime” defender. He even has been used to blitz (though that did not turn out well when Las Vegas’ David Carr eluded him and threw a long touchdown pass).

“He’s become a good player and a good fit for us because of how smart he is,” Austin said. “And because of what he does, he’s got good underneath coverage skills, he’s got good route recognition awareness and he’s a tough kid.”

When Mike Tomlin announced the #Steelers’ seventh-round draft pick on May 1 and called Tre Norwood a Swiss Army knife, he left out an important detail. https://t.co/s8bLiLi6PF

— Tribune-ReviewSports (@TribSports) May 11, 2021

Football acumen is a recurring theme from coaches and teammates when discussing Norwood’s attributes. Norwood’s immediate impact as a late-round pick at the pro level mirrors how, in 2018, as a middle-of-the-road three-star recruit, he quickly contributed to a College Football Playoff-worthy Oklahoma team.

When it comes to the oft-repeated compliment of Norwood that he’s a fast learner, Norwood attributes it to his study habits.

“And that’s something I have always prided myself on, especially starting back in college, making sure that when I learn something new I pick it up in the quickest way possible and apply it to myself the best way that I can learn,” Norwood said. “And I feel like that helps me out of a lot, taking what the coaching point is or whatever needs to be learned and breaking it down into terms that fist best with me. So that’s something I have always prided myself on and will continue to pride myself on.”

It’s easy to see how Norwood is a coaches’ favorite. Any discussion with him about his early success tends to find its way back not to Sundays but to the week of preparation leading up to game day.

“Knowing what the call is, knowing what my technique is within the call and then just playing free,” Norwood said. “Trusting in myself, trusting in my call, trusting in my brothers out there with me on the defense, I think that just allows me to play free and take advantage of the opportunities and make those plays as they come.”

Hey, Steelers Nation, get the latest news about the Pittsburgh Steelers here.