PITTSBURGH -- Of all the photos from last season lining the walls of the Pittsburgh Steelers' practice facility, one striking image was clearly missing but remained front of mind for Steelers brass as they assembled their 2025 NFL draft board.
It was the defining moment of the Steelers' ill-fated playoff berth: Ravens running back Derrick Henry bursting through the final line of the league's highest-paid defense, with nothing but 20 yards of wide open turf separating him from the nail-in-the-coffin touchdown. Behind him, a sea of Steelers defenders gave chase with Henry's teammates celebrating the score long before he reached the goal line.
The loss capped the team's five-game slide to end the 2024 season. And it influenced not only the Steelers' selection of stout run defender Derrick Harmon at No. 21 in the first round of the draft, but the entirety of their seven-man draft class.
"As you guys can see, not only in that pick but others in this draft group, to reestablish physicality and big-man presence," coach Mike Tomlin told NFL Network of the team's priority before the Steelers had even completed their draft class. "And certainly, Derrick Harmon fits that bill. We like his physical stature, we like his style of play. It's just what we covet and what we need."
But the Steelers' draft was dictated by more than just the lasting image of Henry. Instead, the Steelers bypassed flash and prioritized physicality in this year's draft class (and in free agency) in an effort to reclaim the core of their organizational identity.
"It goes beyond the defensive front," Tomlin said. "We wanted to retool physicality in all areas, and included in that discussion is the use of the second-round pick to acquire DK Metcalf. Although he is a receiver, I think he fits the bill in terms of physicality and size and so that definitely was an agenda of ours this weekend."
How soon did Tomlin start setting that agenda, one of prioritizing the acquisition of physical players?
"I doubt that I had even gotten in the shower yet [in Baltimore], to be quite honest with you," Tomlin told NFL Network with a chuckle.
With the continued belief that free agent quarterback Aaron Rodgers will eventually sign with Pittsburgh, the Steelers were methodical and disciplined in executing Tomlin's vision. Outside of top pick Cam Ward, the Steelers had their choice of quarterbacks and had been heavily linked to Colorado's Shedeur Sanders. But a team with a sterling defensive reputation stayed true to its roots and instead drafted a player who models his game after 2011 first-round pick and defensive captain Cameron Heyward.
"You gotta have some grit to be in this organization," Harmon said during the Steelers rookie minicamp. "You gotta have a little bit of edge to you and you gotta play with a little pride to you, and I feel like that's me."
The Steelers continued the trend through their next four picks, spurning Sanders and other quarterback options for prospects they believe embody the grittiness and physicality the organization wants at the core of its collective identity. Of their seven-pick draft class, the Steelers used five selections to address the defense, including fourth-round edge rusher Jack Sawyer, fifth-round DT Yahya Black, seventh-round linebacker Carson Bruener and seventh-round cornerback Donte Kent.
While the emphasis on physicality was intentional, the conference from which they found it wasn't. Even so, six of the Steelers' seven draft picks are products of the Big Ten. Tomlin attributed the volume of Big Ten players to the sheer size of the conference, which ballooned to 18 football programs in 2024, but Sawyer believes his conference-mates share similar traits that made them desirable.
"The Big Ten, I think, is the best conference in football," Sawyer said. "I'm sure the SEC guys will disagree with that, but I think it's a high level of ball that is played in the Big Ten. It's physical and tough. I think that's why you see a lot of guys from there succeed and play on Sundays."
Sawyer was perhaps the most surprising of the Steelers' draft picks. With T.J. Watt, Alex Highsmith and Nick Herbig, the Steelers outside linebacker corps is already one of their strongest positions. But the Steelers were enticed by the Ohio State product's physicality, demeanor and national championship pedigree.
"You're talking about a 260-pound man who has his 'mean' on half the time and probably more than half the time, and that's really a good thing, because you got to be able to set edges and do things," defensive coordinator Teryl Austin said. "And we know in the AFC North, if you're not good at stopping the run, that's going to be a problem. And so, he helps us in that area. I think he also helps us in special teams, because you're talking about a big guy that's not afraid of contact and will be able to do some things."
The Steelers also prioritized those same traits in their pair of offensive selections, too. Iowa running back Kaleb Johnson doesn't have a national championship ring, but he picked up 936 yards after contact and gained at least 10 yards after contact on 20 runs -- the only player to have at least 20 of such runs in the FBS other than No. 6 overall pick Ashton Jeanty (31).
And when the Steelers finally addressed the quarterback position in the sixth-round with Will Howard, they added another national champion who showed a knack for elevating in the toughest situations. Howard finished the 2024 season with five wins over top-five teams, the most in a single season in the AP Poll era (1936).
"I got a chip on my shoulder, and I like to carry that with me," Howard said. "The Steelers are built on blue collar, and that's how I like to play. Hard nose, that's what I'd like to be about."
Until the Steelers have four quarterbacks under contract, the 2025 roster will remain incomplete and the immediate direction of the team's season will remain a mystery. But in drafting players with a coveted intangible toughness, the Steelers took a big step in reclaiming the identity that's been foundational to the organization's historic success -- and one that was nowhere to be found when it mattered most last season.