The Pittsburgh Steelers didn’t just get an offensive lineman when they used the No. 96 pick on Gennings Dunker in the 2026 NFL Draft. They got a guy who has already found a way to make himself impossible to ignore.
Dunker arrived with plenty of real football credentials. He was a three-year starter on Iowa’s offensive line, helped anchor the unit that won the Joe Moore Award last season, and finished his college run with more than 38 career starts. He also came into the draft carrying some buzz from a different kind of stage: his Senior Bowl interviews, where he emerged as one of the funniest personalities around.
That combination made him a memorable name before Pittsburgh ever called him. Once the Steelers took him, the attention didn’t stop at his blocking ability.
The humor has carried right into his first season in Pittsburgh, where Dunker has already carved out a small but notable role in the team’s daily routine. Aaron Rodgers said Dunker has been expected to open offensive meetings with a joke since training camp, and that habit has continued into the regular season. Rodgers’ comment put a spotlight on a rookie who has become a steady source of laughs inside the building.
A clip shared by 93.7 The Fan showed Rodgers explaining that Dunker starts meetings with a joke and that “he kills it.”
Rodgers also said Dunker hits on “about 95 percent” of his jokes.
For a Steelers team trying to build something more functional on offense in Rodgers’ second and final year with the organization, that kind of presence matters. Dunker was brought in to help fortify the protection in front of Rodgers, but his early influence has gone beyond the line of scrimmage. He has helped keep the mood loose in a room led by one of the league’s most intense personalities.
The results on the field have been mixed, but the offense has looked more balanced than it did last season. Pittsburgh ranks in the middle of the pack in passing and running, and after the run game bogged down a year ago, the whole offense tended to stall. Early this season, the Steelers have been more competitive in both areas.
Dunker has also missed time because of an injury, but his presence has still been felt. He’s another example of Iowa turning an undervalued recruit into an NFL player, after 247Sports ranked him as a three-star prospect and the No. 36 overall interior offensive lineman in the 2019 class.
For Pittsburgh, that looks like another smart Iowa find - one with talent, toughness, and a sense of humor that has already left a mark.
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