When the going gets tough, the tough get going. That is, unless you’re young and immature, as many are on the 2023 Pittsburgh Steelers roster — then you fold and stop fighting. Diontae Johnson, George Pickens, Najee Harris. They’re all lost and lack direction.
But if you look closely, there’s one guy younger than all of them and hasn’t quit.
Linebacker Nick Herbig, Pittsburgh’s fourth-round selection of the 2023 NFL draft, has shown some gusto in his first season. If he continues to play his cards right, he could very well be the Steelers’ future on the outside. In the meantime, he’s paying his dues as a reserve and a stellar special teamer.
Herbig combined with Connor Heyward — another youngster whose heart is still in it — to set the Steelers up for their first of two Week 15 touchdowns. Heyward blocked a punt, and Herbig instinctually recovered it.
“He does have Steeler heart,” Ben Roethlisberger said on Saturday’s “Footbahlin” podcast after the recovery. “He came to play football.”
And the Steelers are better because of it.
