BE.”Nick Herbig: The ‘Stuntman’ Now a Superstar? Are the Steelers Betting Their Entire Defense on a One-Hit Phenomenon?”
DUBLIN — Welcome to the Nick Herbig show, happening at right outside linebacker.
The Pittsburgh Steelers, like they always seem to do, appear to have another star pass rusher. Herbig has been nothing short of a game-wrecker since he took over for Alex Highsmith, who is suffering from a high ankle sprain.In the two and a half games since that moment, Herbig has 2.5 sacks, eight quarterback hits, and 14 pressures. Over the seven games he has started in his Steelers career, he has five sacks, 13 quarterback hits, four forced fumbles, and four tackles for loss.
He has been nothing short of a splash play machine in his limited opportunities with one of the quicker get offs in the NFL with an average get off time of .77 seconds, according to Next Gen Stats.
Herbig’s run defensive issues appear to have patched themselves, too. There is not much of a hole in his game anymore, and that is what the Steelers are realizing quite quickly.
“Nick’s a good football player. That’s just what he is. He can do everything,” outside linebackers coach Denzel Martin said. “People like to think he’s just a pass guy, but if you watch the tape from this past week, he was (defending) run, pass, anything we needed him to be – special teams, you know what I mean? He just does it all. He’s just gonna continue to get better every week.”
Herbig has forced the Steelers to consider not taking him off the field when Highsmith returns. Highsmith, in his own right, is a productive and tantalizing pass rusher. T.J. Watt’s name and resume speaks for itself.
Martin has dubbed the trio ‘Full Metal Jacket’, and includes rookie Jack Sawyer in that group, too. But the secret weapon of it all might be Herbig, who has taken a huge leap this year and is playing like nothing short of a superstar.
