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Steelers Analysis

Film Room: Steelers OLB Nick Herbig Obliterates Bills OL

Published

9 months ago

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Steelers OLB Nick Herbig

Do the Steelers have a steal in the fourth round out of Wisconsin? For the second straight preseason game, rookie outside linebacker Nick Herbig is proving to the Steelers that he could be an early contributor to the team. There were a number of pressures and a fantastic strip sack from Herbig in the game against the Bills. And there is an art to how he wins as a pass rusher. It all starts with his size and how he uses his unique advantages on the football field.

First, let’s break down his strip sack. This is the best play of Herbig’s entire preseason so far. Part of what makes Nick Herbig so dangerous as a pass rusher is his ability to explode off the ball and get up the arc to create tough angles for tackles, especially if they’re just using a traditional 45-set. Herbig’s explosiveness causes that right tackle to speed up his set, and by the time he is at his spot, he has to play this to run Herbig around the arc. But the outside shoulder is now turned, and his hands are going to be touching that inside shoulder of Herbig if he can reduce his surface area and bend.

But that is where this comes in and makes it all special. The right tackle, to his credit, does a great job recovering against Herbig’s explosiveness to get to that spot. He is a spot where he could get a solid punch on Herbig’s chest. But Herbig’s uses a filthy cross chop-rip combination to bat down the tackle’s hands and the dip after that makes that right tackle go to the ground. What makes this rep so special is Herbig’s bend. He has to tighten this arc and direct it back to the quarterback. His ankle and hip flexibility is unreal and the fact that he somehow stays up while tightening that arc showcases the special bend that Herbig honestly has as a baseline trait. His left ankle is so far out in front of his outside hip, that can not happen without special flexibility. For a still image, just look at how far his outside leg gets in front of his body. You can not keep your balance and soften that corner without elite lower body flexibility.

However, his rep against Dion Dawkins, the Bills starting left tackle, is a different rep entirely that showcases what Herbig as a player can bring to the table with some new elements in his game.

If there is one thing outside of the weight that Herbig lacks, it is length. He measured in having sub-32-inch arms, 18th percentile to be exact, and so power was never his go-to move. Yet, with this stun on a modified bull rush, Herbig lifted Dawkins off his spot and completely created a lane for himself by doing that. We know Herbig can win with speed, and he was experimenting with a long arm and bull rush at times in training camp. If he adds even a fraction power to his game, his speed rush becomes all the more deadly. There is natural power to harness there, and if tackles are going to bail out to the outside and almost blatantly overset, Herbig can come back inside and push them off their spot on their heels with power. That is an element of the game that can really take Herbig’s pass rush bag and counters to the next level.

There is some run game reps from Nick Herbig, too. This is a split zone run that is supposed to kick Herbig out off the edge. Instead, he keys the run and throttles down the arc immediately. T.J. Watt loves to do this on looks such as this one, too. But the tight end could honestly seal him off still and push him out of the play and open up the backside cutback lane. But Herbig’s explosiveness and bend allow him to dip around that block and make the tackle for loss. He just made play after play in the game. At this point, the Steelers have to be confident that they are truly four deep at outisde linebacker.

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