Pittsburgh Steelers rookie's standout preseason catches the eye of national outlet

Mike Moraitis

Pittsburgh Steelers rookie's standout preseason catches the eye of national outlet image

Barry Reeger-Imagn Images

The Pittsburgh Steelers needed to restock their defensive line this offseason and did so by drafting both Derrick Harmon and Yahya Black.

While Harmon was the more notable addition given his status as a first-round pick, Black is quickly showing that he deserves some attention, also.

Pro Football Focus' Bradley Locker compiled a 2025 Preseason All-Rookie Team and Black was featured at one of the interior defensive line spots. Harmon, meanwhile, was not.

Here's Locker's write-up on Black:

"Black put together a highly disruptive preseason, securing an 86.8 overall PFF grade. Staying in black and gold from his time at Iowa, Black made six stops and also added a 78.9 PFF pass-rushing grade. Two of Black’s three pressures were sacks, and his long arms regularly disrupted quarterbacks’ throwing lanes," Locker wrote.

Over three preseason contests, Black posted PFF grades of 86.8, 80.7 and 78.9 in the overall, run defense and pass-rush categories. He also tallied two sacks, three pressures and four tackles.

Black saved his best performance for last. In Preseason Week 3, the Iowa product had elite grades of 91.9 overall and 90.4 in the pass-rush and tallied both of his sacks in the contest.

The rookie was listed as the No. 3 nose tackle on the Steelers' last depth chart behind starter Keeanu Benton and backup Daniel Ekuale.

But it's conceivable Black could work his way up in due time if his preseason showing carries into the regular season.

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Mike Moraitis

Mike Moraitis is a freelance writer who covers the NFL for the Sporting News. Over his nearly two decades covering sports, Mike has also worked for Bleacher Report, USA TODAY and FanSided. He hates writing in the third person.