Steelers' Herbig placed on season-ending IR with shoulder injury

Dylan Grausz | Aug 21, 2024

Jul 27, 2023; Latrobe, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers guard Nate Herbig (71) participates in drills during training camp at Saint Vincent College. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports / Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Only one more week of preseason games remain before NFL teams will finalize their rosters and the preparation for opening week will commence. However, the Pittsburgh Steelers will be without a key piece to their game plan as presumed starting center Nate Herbig was placed on season-ending injured reserve after suffering a torn rotator cuff.

Herbig, who injured his shoulder during a team practice on August 11, did not play in the Steelers’ week two preseason game against the Buffalo Bills and after his injury led to speculations that he would miss an extended period of time, the team ultimately placed him on the IR after getting a second opinion.

With Herbig out, the Steelers will turn to rookie Zach Frazier to hold down the fort at center for the year and with Herbig a free agent after the season, his future in Pittsburgh could very well be uncertain.

A standout on Stanford’s offensive line from 2016-2018, Herbig started every season he was there, playing left guard before moving to right guard as a sophomore and won numerous accolades including being named a freshman All-American by ESPN and earning second-team All-Pac-12 honors in 2018 and first team honors in 2017. Forgoing his senior season to declare for the NFL Draft, he ended up going undrafted but signed a free agent deal with the Philadelphia Eagles where he spent his first three seasons.

After those three seasons with the Eagles, he was waived by Philadelphia, picked up by the New York Jets for the 2022 season, and then declared free agency in March of 2023 when he signed on with the Steelers. Herbig played in 17 games with Pittsburgh last season, but only started two games for the team. He was on the field for 15% of the snaps that the Steelers took last season.