Gabriel Rubio didn’t need a huge snap count to make his first NFL game matter.
In the Steelers’ convincing Week 5 win over the Indianapolis Colts, the spotlight naturally landed on Jaylen Warren, who ripped off an 80-yard touchdown reception and a 50-yard scoring run. Aaron Rodgers also drew praise after becoming the first Steelers quarterback since Terry Bradshaw in 1982 to throw three touchdown passes in three straight games in the same season.
Still, the most important work in that victory might have come from a rookie who barely had time to introduce himself.
Rubio, Pittsburgh’s sixth-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, made the initial 53-man roster but didn’t get into a regular-season game until Week 5. His opportunity arrived after Derrick Harmon was placed on IR this past week with a foot injury, and Rubio was elevated to help fill the void.
He made the most of it.
The 6-foot-5, 321-pound defensive tackle logged 14 snaps overall, with 10 of them coming against the run. On those 10 run-defense plays, Indianapolis never got more than two yards on a carry.
That’s not a typo. The Colts’ rushing results with Rubio on the field went like this: 2 yards, minus-1, 1, 0, 0, 2, 1, minus-2, 2 and 2.
That works out to just 7 rushing yards on 10 carries, or 0.7 yards per attempt, while Pittsburgh allowed 59 yards on 14 carries when Rubio was off the field.
There is some context here. His usage was tied heavily to the situation, with Rubio mostly showing up in third-and-short or fourth-and-short looks.
In those moments, the Colts’ room to hit a big play shrank by design. And yes, Pittsburgh did give up a touchdown on a Tyler Warren sneak on one of the snaps when Rubio was out there.
But the bigger picture still points to a rookie who held his ground and then some.
Rubio didn’t do much as a pass rusher on his four pass-rush snaps, but he was a problem against the run. He stayed firm at the point of attack and showed strong effort when chasing plays laterally. He was credited with one run stop, but he also finished with three tackles on those 10 run-defense snaps.
The tape backed it up, too. Rubio finished as the Steelers’ third-highest-graded defender in Week 5, earning a 68.8 overall PFF grade behind only Jalen Ramsey and nose tackle Yahya Black [$].
That kind of showing matters even more against a back like Jonathan Taylor. The three-time Pro Bowler was held to 45 yards on 15 carries, one of the least productive full games of his NFL career.
It was a small sample, and the circumstances helped shape his role, but Rubio’s first regular-season appearance was a strong one. With Harmon out for the foreseeable future, he’ll now have a chance to build on a debut that was easy to miss on the scoreboard and hard to miss on tape.
In Other News...
DJ McKinney Could Give Notre Dame A Rare Edge At BYU
DJ McKinney brings an uncommon kind of familiarity to Notre Dames trip to BYU, one that comes from seeing the Cougars up close in each of the past three seasons with different teams before arriving in South Bend. For a defense preparing for a road test in a tough environment, that kind of repeated exposure matters, and Marcus Freeman has already pointed to McKinneys background as a useful source of insight into what BYU wants to do on offense.
McKinneys history against the Cougars also gives the Irish a player who has felt the speed and pressure of this matchup firsthand. He has been targeted plenty in those games and has answered with production, including an interception he returned 25 yards in 2024, which gives Notre Dame at least one defender who has seen the opponents tendencies from the other side and knows how quickly things can turn on a single play. [Read more 🡒]
Jason Onye's Return Puts Notre Dame In A Tough BYU Decision
Jason Onye has been out of Notre Dames defensive line mix since the season opener, but a return could be on the table as the Irish get ready for BYU. Defensive coordinator Chris Ash said the staff is working to get Onye cleared for practice and game action, and the focus remains on handling the situation carefully so the injury does not flare up again.
For Notre Dame, the decision is about more than just adding another body up front. Onyes experience would matter in a rotation that could use the help, especially with this being his final season in South Bend, but the Irish also have to weigh how much they want to push him in a game week that could test both his readiness and their patience. [Read more 🡒]
Notre Dame Defense Faces Its Toughest Test Yet Against BYU
Through the first six games of the 2026 season, Notre Dames defense has looked every bit the part of a unit built to carry big expectations, sitting first nationally in yards allowed under coordinator Chris Ash. The numbers have reflected a group that has been sturdy at every level, and the challenge now gets a different kind of edge with BYU coming in as one of the more polished offenses the Irish will see.
The Cougars protect their backfield well, convert third downs at a strong rate and bring enough structure to make this a real stress test for Notre Dames front and secondary alike. The Irish will need their defensive line to hold up against BYUs offensive line, Drayk Bowen to help navigate the quarterback run-game and Christian Gray to steady the slot, because this matchup looks like the kind that can reveal how far a dominant start really travels. [Read more 🡒]