The Pittsburgh Steelers are 3-2, unbeaten at home at 3-0, and there’s a clear thread running through the early part of their season: the rookie class is already shaping the conversation.
That was always supposed to be part of the plan. After drafting 10 players and keeping an undrafted free agent on the roster, the Steelers needed first-year contributors right away. Five games in, several of them are delivering exactly that, while a few others are still waiting for their chance to matter.
Max Iheanachor has been one of the clearest wins. He probably should have opened the year as the starting right tackle, and the right side of the line has looked much better since he and Brock Hoffman replaced Spencer Anderson and Dylan Cook.
Iheanachor has had a few rough snaps, but the overall package has been strong. His hands are quick, his feet are quick, he’s unusually powerful, and he doesn’t get tricked easily.
The Steelers may have found their right tackle for the next five to 10 years.
Germie Bernard also keeps trending up. Week 5 looked like his breakout, but that kind of production was coming sooner or later from the second-round pick.
With injuries stacking up, Bernard became Aaron Rodgers’ top pass-catching option against the Indianapolis Colts. He’s already earned Rodgers’ trust, even if the early film still shows some ugly moments - including drops that stalled drives or led to turnovers.
The mistakes are real, but so is the production, and there’s plenty more room for him to grow.
Daylen Everette has been thrown into far more than the Steelers originally expected. Trading Joey Porter Jr. forced the team’s hand, and now the rookie third-round pick is playing a big chunk of the snaps on the outside.
He’s looked like a workable starter, which matters even more given the spot he was thrust into. If Pittsburgh had signed him on the open market for a premium, the scrutiny would be harsher.
As a rookie filling a depleted spot, he’s giving the team a major lift.
Robert Spears-Jennings has been the steadiest rookie of the bunch. The safety from Oklahoma has been dependable since arriving in Pittsburgh, and that consistency has carried across whatever role he’s been asked to handle. Now he’s finally getting his chance with the starting defensive group.
Gabe Rubio has also made a real impression, even if his sample size is tiny. His first and only NFL action came in Week 5, when he played 14 snaps on defense.
In that brief look, the massive defensive tackle - listed at 6'5" and over 320 pounds - showed enough to stand out as a sturdy run defender. For a rookie depth piece, that’s a promising start.
Not every evaluation comes with the same optimism. Gennings Dunker was dealt a brutal setback when a lower-body injury essentially ended his rookie season before it really started. Pittsburgh saw him as a future starting right guard, but that idea now has been pushed back to 2027, which leaves him with an incomplete grade for now.
Drew Allar was one of the bright spots of training camp and the preseason, but that shine hasn’t carried over into the regular season. He made the roster, though he won’t see the field unless injuries pile up. For now, he looks like an average pick in 2026, with the possibility that 2027 is when the selection finally pays off.
Kaden Wetjen has been the most disappointing fourth-round pick in the 2026 draft so far. The Steelers haven’t gotten splash plays from him as a returner, and he isn’t making an impact on offense either. That’s a rough return for a player who, at this stage, looks like a poor fit in Pittsburgh.
Riley Nowakowski is helping on special teams, but the rest of his role hasn’t developed. He was drafted as a fullback, yet there’s essentially nothing to evaluate there because he barely sees the field outside special teams work. That appears to be the plan for the rest of the 2026 season.
Eli Heidenreich’s early grade is underwhelming as well. The seventh-round pick made the 53-man roster out of camp, which was a surprise, but he has barely been used in the regular season. He’s been inactive in recent weeks, and even with injuries mounting on offense, a bigger role still seems unlikely.
As for the athletic running back the Steelers like, the talent and upside are there. But that’s where the praise stops for now.
He’s still waiting for his opportunity, and so is the undrafted free agent who made the roster after flashing some pass-rush moves in the preseason. That preseason showing helped keep him around in 2026, but his regular-season debut remains on hold.
In Other News...
Steelers Suddenly Face A Very Different Quarterback Test In Week 6
The quarterback picture in Tampa Bay has shifted again, and it changes the feel of what the Steelers are getting ready for in Week 6. Baker Mayfield will miss another game because of a dislocated thumb, leaving Pittsburgh to prepare for an undrafted rookie who has already spent the last two weeks learning on the fly while handling the offense.
Jalon Daniels has thrown for 337 yards with two touchdowns and three interceptions so far, and the challenge for the Steelers is less about a familiar veteran script and more about discipline. Pittsburgh is stressing pass rush lanes to keep Daniels from escaping the pocket and to limit what he can do with both his mobility and arm strength, which makes this matchup a different kind of test than the one it expected earlier in the week. [Read more 🡒]
Aaron Rodgers Is Giving Steelers Fans A Real MVP Debate
Aaron Rodgers has already spent enough of his career in the MVP conversation to make almost any new twist feel familiar, but the discussion around him in Pittsburgh is starting to pick up real steam again. The veteran quarterback, now with the Steelers, has four MVP awards on his resume, and the way he has been throwing the ball lately is enough to pull old memories back into view for fans who remember his peak years.
Former defensive lineman Osi Umenyiora was willing to say the quiet part out loud by putting Rodgers back in the MVP mix, a projection that inevitably brings 2021 to mind. It is still just a forecast, not a conclusion, but Rodgers has given the Steelers something to think about beyond simple competence at quarterback, and that alone can turn a routine stretch of games into a much bigger debate. [Read more 🡒]
Steelers Suddenly Have A Rico Dowdle Decision To Make
Rico Dowdles status has become a quiet but important subplot for the Steelers as they head deeper into the fall. The running back has missed three games with a toe injury, though he was close to getting back on the field in Week 5 and could be in line to return in Week 6, which only adds to the sense that Pittsburgh is nearing a decision point on a player it views as a key backup in the backfield.
The bigger question is whether the Steelers treat Dowdle as part of the long-term plan or as a piece that could draw outside interest before the November 10 deadline. He is under contract through 2027, so Pittsburgh has every reason to hold onto him unless the season starts to veer off course and the teams playoff outlook changes in a meaningful way. [Read more 🡒]