Alex Highsmith Showing He 'Belongs' at Steelers Training Camp
PITTSBURGH -- It's no secret the Steelers have an outside linebacker duo worthy of Pro Bowl recognition.
Bud Dupree and T.J. Watt enter 2020, coming off their best NFL seasons yet. A Defensive Player of the Year finalist and 26 combined sacks have the league expecting more as both players fight for a contract.
Behind them, though, remains questions. After the team released Anthony Chickillo in March, they headed to the NFL Draft to add the next member of their outside linebacker room.
Third-round pick Alex Highsmith is less than a month into his first NFL training camp, with no OTAs or minicamp to head him prepare.
Defensive coordinator Keith Butler admitted the team could likely use more depth at the position, but does see Highsmith earning his place behind Watt and Dupree.
"We've got to rest those guys at some point in time," Butler said. "Ola [Adeniyi] is doing a good job for us also. But Alex [Highsmith] has really shown that he belongs in the NFL. He belongs where we drafted him at. Do we really know that until we get into live-action? Probably not. But what we've seen him do here in practice is encouraging."
Butler said no preseason games make it difficult to see how far Highsmith's production truly is. It's a task they'll need to overcome, but one that has allowed them to see development more clearly in the past with players like Watt.
"The advantage we had then was those four preseason games," Butler said. "That was a big difference for us. We get to see them in live-action and see them play at the NFL level before we made decisions to do stuff like that. This is different for us. As different as it's ever been. We don't have those games to rely on to put those younger players into the game and see if they're ready for the National Football League."
Still, Highsmith's football I.Q. has allowed him to move quickly into an NFL groove.
"He's got a real good attitude for what we're asking him to do," Butler said. "He's real good learner. You don't have to tell him something two or three times. He usually gets it after the first time.
"I've always thought good defensive football players learn from their mistakes. What I mean by that is they don't repeat them. And I think Alex is that type of guy. Hopefully, as the year goes along, he'll get better."
Noah Strackbein is a Publisher with AllSteelers. Follow Noah on Twitter @NoahStrack, and AllSteelers @si_steelers.
