When the Steelers drafted Nick Herbig in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL Draft, the expected a good player that would develop over time and one that needed to grow into a bigger frame. That went out of the window due to his ability to make a big play every time that he touched the field. The Steelers could not refuse to give him more playing time and it paid off.
Now, entering the 2024 season, the Steelers have three outside linebackers that they feel comfortable with on the field at any moment of a game. One of the guys ahead of him is superstar T.J. Watt who missed OTAs this offseason. That gave Herbig the opportunity to play with the starters and go against a guy like Broderick Jones, play after play.
“I look at this like a chance to get better and be able to go against a guy like Broderick (Jones),” Herbig told Mark Kaboly of The Athletic. “You have to take full advantage of opportunities like these.”
While Herbig loves Watt and is happy to sit behind one of the greatest players in the league, he knows that the opportunities he got will not always be there so he is tried to make the most of it. He mentioned that he tries to make the most of it when Watt is around, too, but in a slightly different way. He picks Watt’s mind for tips and tricks to help him better his game.
“You love when T.J. is here because he is a great player and role model for us, but it is great to get some reps with the ones,” Herbig said. “When you have a guy of his caliber around every day, it’s kind of hard not to ask questions. … He naturally does just give you pointers. You miss him, but I will take what I can get.”
The only other guy that received meaningful snaps at edge rusher a season ago besides Watt, Highsmith and Herbig was Markus Golden. The Steelers decided to let Golden walk in free agency and they did not really acquire the talent to replace him. This indicated that the Steelers are ready to give Herbig a bigger role and decided now is the time to get him moving up the depth chart.
While that seems to be the Steelers plans, Herbig said that he is not worried about the competition in the position room, or lack thereof, instead he is worried about getting better every single day.
“I don’t pay attention to that,” Herbig said of the lack of competition added at the position. “I come in and work, and whatever happens, happens. What I worry about is getting one percent better, and if I do that, I will be fine. I have to get better as a whole, get a better football IQ, more physical, faster, stronger, smarter.”
The second-year pass rusher is primed for another strong season in the black-and-gold and the team expects it from him so look for Herbig to put on a show at training camp and in the preseason to secure that top backup spot at outside linebacker.
51 • Nick Herbig, Outside Linebacker, Wisconsin
6-foot-2, 240 pounds, 22 years old, 2nd Season
Acquired: The Steelers drafted Nick Herbig out of the University of Wisconsin with the 132nd overall pick in the fourth round of the 2023 NFL Draft.
Last Season: As a rookie, Nick Herbig bursted onto the scene for the Steelers defense in a big way. Herbig played as a rotational edge rusher behind T.J. Watt and Alex Highsmith but seemed to make a play any time that he was on the field. His most memorable moment of his rookie season came in the fourth quarter of the game against the Seattle Seahawks. He forced a strip fumble of quarterback Geno Smith and recovered it, helping seal a 30-23 Steelers’ victory.
He logged 27 tackles, three sacks and two forced fumbles in 17 games played as a rookie.
| Year | GP | Tackles | Sacks | FFs |
| 2023 | 17 | 27 | 3 | 2 |
College: Coming out of high school in Hawaii as a four-star recruit, Nick Herbig decided to commit to the University of Wisconsin to continue his football career. As a true freshman, Herbig started all seven games that he appeared in as an outside linebacker. In his seven appearances, he totaled 26 combined tackles, six tackles for loss, one sack, and one pass defended. In his first start at Wisconsin, he logged a sack and a pass defended against Illinois.
As a sophomore in 2021, Herbig started all 13 games for the Badgers and took a big step forward in terms of production. Herbig finished the season with 64 combined tackles, 14.5 tackles for loss, nine sacks, four passes defended, and two forced fumbles. His nine sacks led the Badgers and ranked fourth in the Big Ten. He also finished seventh in the Big Ten with 14.5 tackles for loss. Pro Football Focus gave Herbig the highest rating (91.4) of any Wisconsin edge rusher in history, ranking higher than his current teammate T.J. Watt.
In his junior season, Herbig started all 11 of the Badgers games. He tallied 47 combined tackles, 15.5 tackles for loss, 11 sacks, two passes defended, and two forced fumbles in 2022. His most dominant performance came against Maryland when he recorded three tackles for loss and two sacks.
He led the nation in sacks per game (1.0) and his 15.5 tackles for loss led the Big Ten. Following the season, Herbig was a consensus All-Big Ten first-team selection and was named an All-American by multiple different outlets.
Over his three years in Madison, Herbig logged 31 career starts and racked up 36 tackles for loss, 21 sacks, 7 passes defended, and four forced fumbles.
| Year | GP | GS | Tackles | TFLs | Sacks | PDs | FFs |
| 2020 | 7 | 7 | 26 | 6.0 | 1.0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2021 | 13 | 13 | 64 | 14.5 | 9.0 | 4 | 2 |
| 2022 | 11 | 11 | 47 | 15.5 | 11.0 | 2 | 2 |
Salary cap and future: Nick Herbig is entering the second year of his standard four-year rookie contract with the Steelers. In 2024, Herbig will cost $1.08 million against the team’s cap space. His cap hit includes a base salary of $915,000 and a bonus of $168,231.
Herbig is signed with the Steelers through the end of the 2026 season when he will become an unrestricted free agent.
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