ClutchPoints
Mike Tomlin’s Steelers have built their reputation on letting iron sharpen iron. Now, 2025 is shaping up as Pittsburgh’s most compelling test of that creed in years. A bumper rookie class has arrived with the clear mandate of pushing entrenched veterans for snaps. That’s just as quarterback Aaron Rodgers sets foot on the South Side practice fields. The result: every OTA rep suddenly feels like a referendum on the future of a perennial AFC North contender.
After months of polite flirtation, Aaron Rodgers sealed a one-year, $13.6 million deal on Thursday. He should report to minicamp, shifting Steelers talk from “Will he?” to “What’s left in his arm?” For now, Mason Rudolph—fresh off a two-year reunion deal—and sixth-round pick Will Howard are splitting first-team OTA work while Rodgers ramps up. The wide-receiver depth chart is still in flux after Diontae Johnson’s departure, but Tomlin insists that Arthur Smith’s offense will lean heavily on the ground game and defense. Each of those units now features blue-chip rookies who could force their way past proven names.
Here we’ll try to look at the Pittsburgh Steelers veteran players whose roles will be pushed by rookies in the 2025 NFL season.
Jaylen Warren is nobody’s idea of a placeholder. The 2020 UDFA has ridden hard-nosed running and underrated receiving chops to back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons. Yet the Steelers tipped their hand on draft weekend by selecting Kaleb Johnson in Round 3. The former Iowa star owns a 220-pound frame and a 1,500-yard college season. He also has the kind of north-south explosion that reminds scouts of Najee Harris—minus Harris’ mileage.
Johnson isn’t polished in pass protection, though. As such, Warren’s third-down role is safe—for now. However, Pitssburgh’s outside-zone scheme will ask backs to read one cut and go. That seems like a perfect fit for Johnson’s vision and acceleration. If he shows he can keep Rodgers upright on blitz pick-ups, Johnson’s ceiling could tilt the snap-count scale before Halloween. Warren’s margin for error shrank the moment the Commissioner read Johnson’s name.
Beanie Bishop fought from undrafted free agent to eight-game starter last year. He flashed sticky man coverage and feisty run support. He also surrendered a sub-optimal 105.8 passer rating when targeted. That opened the door for competition. Pittsburgh added veteran Brandin Echols in free agency and spent a seventh-round pick on Central Michigan’s Donte Kent.
Kent’s draft slot belies his polish. Senior-Bowl evaluators praised his mirror ability. In OTAs, defensive coordinator Teryl Austin has already cycled Kent into nickel reps with the starters. Bishop admits he feels “a target on my back,” and the Steelers are happy to keep it there. Joey Porter Jr and Darius Slay lock down the boundary. The slot, however, is wide open. Kent’s ball skills (nine college interceptions) give him a puncher’s chance to steal it before Week 1.
Alex Highsmith [signed his lucrative...
