Miami’s Damien Martinez Modeled Game after Steelers RB Great | 2025 Steelers NFL Draft Profile
INDIANAPOLIS — In case you haven’t heard, the 2025 NFL Draft is loaded with talented running backs with the Pittsburgh Steelers brass taking a noticeable interest in this crop of prospects. One of those guys that is flying under the radar amongst his peers is Miami tailback Damien Martinez, who ran for over 1,000 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2024. Years of preparation take place in order to put themselves in position to get drafted and during that process, they’ll take bits and pieces from greats of the past.
One of those players he models his game after? Former Steelers All-Pro Le’veon Bell.
After studying Martinez on film, I wouldn’t say that they are necessarily a one-to-one comparison by any stretch but there are similarities in terms of density and patience in between the tackles. But the Pittsburgh love didn’t stop there. The true junior was asked to name his top three running backs in the league right now. He responded “Saquon Barkley, Najee Harris and James Cook.”
For Steelers fans that have enjoyed watching Harris tote the rock over the years, they’ll love the physical approach to Martinez game. He’s a real violent runner who finishes runs with physicality on a consistent basis with plenty of examples of him pushing the pile forward for excess yardage. Those traits are easily reflected in the traits as well. Beyond being arguably the most reliable short-yardage option in the group, Martinez averaged a whopping 4.46 yards after contact this past season, which was the second-best mark in the class trailing only Boise State’s Ashton Jeanty. (PFF)
One thing that is relatively unique about his profile, which speaks to the ever-changing landscape of the college game, is that he’s experienced in both gap and zone blocking schemes. From 2022-2023, he thrived at Oregon State, which featured more outside zone from under center. This past season at Miami, it was more of a power spread approach, with him thriving on duo runs from the shotgun. Martinez feels like his college experience shows his versatility to NFL organizations.
“I feel like I proved at both places that I can run everything pretty well, learning the offense,” Martinez said. “Whatever coaches need me to do, I’m gonna get it done.”
After a slow start to the season by his standards, the game versus Louisville was a real turning point for him individually. He toted the rock 12 times for 89 yards and a score, wearing the Cardinals down as the game wore on. This was the start of a hot streak, with him torturing the Florida State defense for 148 yards and two touchdowns the after. He explained what changed.
“We had the first five games or whatever going into the bye week, went back to the film from the games we played. i just saw what I needed to do, get myself in the flow of the offense, lock in and finish strong in those last six games.
HOW DOES DAMIEN MARTINEZ FIT WITH STEELERS?
There are reports out there that state that the Steelers are open-minded in terms of bringing Najee Harris, who is an impending free agent, back on a new contract. But the former Alabama product will likely want to see what other opportunities are out there and there’s a solid chance that he could get a nice chunk of change in the form of a raise that Pittsburgh would shy away from. His running mate Jaylen Warren is all but guaranteed to be back in the fold, with Omar Khan assuring us that they will tender him as a restricted free agent. Knowing that the latter of those guys is best used as a complimentary back, the Steelers need someone to pair him with.
This group of running backs is akin to an ice cream parlor, there are a myriad of flavors to choose from in all different sizes. Historically speaking, the Steelers brass typically gravitates towards the bigger backs that are capable of handing on a larger workload. However, with Arthur Smith’s wide zone system, they’re going to be looking for someone comfortable toting the rock outside the tackles. Luckily for them, there are a handful of backs that have extensive experience on the perimeter. One of those guys being Damien Martinez.
Asking Martinez to exclusively run outside zone isn’t necessarily his calling card but he’s comfortable with it. He’s at his best when he’s able to get downhill and he’s one of those runners that has great contact balance while not needing a runway to deal those punishing blows on command. Pittsburgh’s front office has talked ad nauseam about beating teams up in the trenches and winning with their bigs by establishing an identity as a run-first offense. Martinez is reliable in short yardage situations, tends to get even stronger at the end of games by wearing teams down and finishes at the goal line. Defenders hate tackling this dude and for a bigger back, his light feet will surprise you. Not only does Martinez consistently get what’s blocked for him, his film shows a player that can make things happen when the environment around him is less than ideal.
While I’m higher on Martinez than consensus is, there are still other backs that are better fits, such as Iowa’s Kaleb Johnson who could be available in the second round. One of the knocks on him that is valid is that he’s limited to being a doubles hitter, without that top-end gear to break home runs. To his credit, when he gets into the third level, he’s just looking to dish out as much contact as possible because he knows he can’t outrun defensive backs. The impact in the passing game is a work in progress as well. He was fine as a check down option but the sample size is limited. The bigger area for improvement is in pass pro, which is the element of the game that typically keeps young backs off the field early on. On film, you’ll see him a tick late to process his assignments and he doesn’t square guys up to take advantage of his frame.
DAMIEN MARTINEZ COLLEGE STATS
Martinez earned a huge role right away as a freshman at Oregon State, but despite being highly productive, he was never given more than 200 carries in a season. From an efficiency standpoint, he checks all of the boxes and the perceived lack of usage could actually end up being a good thing. On draft weekend, he’ll have less wear and tear on body and a clean bill of health from an injury perspective.
| Year – Team | GS | Attempts | Yards | TDs | YPA |
| 2024 – Miami | 13 | 159 | 1,002 | 10 | 6.3 |
| 2023 – Oregon State | 12 | 193 | 1,185 | 9 | 6.1 |
| 2022 – Oregon State | 13 | 161 | 982 | 7 | 6.1 |
TALE OF THE TAPE
Measured at Senior Bowl: 5-foot-11 1/8, 226 pounds, 32-inch arms, 8 1/2-inch hands
Listed by Miami: 6-foot, 232 pounds
WHERE WILL DAMIEN MARTINEZ BE DRAFTED?
After a solid week at the Senior Bowl, Martinez could help himself tremendously by testing well at the NFL Combine. Still, it feels like he is flying far too under the radar even in a class this talented. At 21-years old, he’s one of my favorite values in the mid rounds regardless of position.
FILM ROOM
ODDS AND ENDS
Martinez attended Lewisville (Texas) High School, the home of current Buffalo Bills wide receiver Tyrell Shavers and former NFL kicker Teddy Garcia. … Rated as a three-star prospect coming out of high school, picked Oregon State over offers from Georgia Tech, Kansas, San Diego State and Texas State. … The Steelers’ last draft pick from Miami was outside linebacker Quincy Roche in 2021.