PITTSBURGH — DeMarvin Leal might be the most athletic player on the Steelers defensive line. That says a lot, given some of the freaks they have up front, but Leal has a five-star pedigree. A year ago, Leal brought great flashes at times to the position he played, but with a midseason injury compounded by an odd body type, Leal never found a true home right out of the gate.
Now, he trained to be a tweener in his second season. Leal weighs 290 pounds, perfect for a tweener with his athletic skills. Leal had to tread a fine line between not getting too heavy to be able to bend on the edge and, on the other side of that coin, remain heavy enough to withstand run-blocking duties on the interior. A year ago, his run defense ran hot and cold, forcing the Steelers to put him in the position of playing primarily on passing downs.
“They definitely told me to work on my run defense,” Leal said. “You know, especially working that there on the inside. It’s very important. Some moments last year it was there, and there were others where it just wasn’t. I have to be more consistent there.”
From a purely physical tools standpoint, Leal has five-star traits from burst to agility and flexibility. Embracing his role as a rotational guy both inside and on the outside, Leal will probably crack the starting lineup one day. His athleticism raises his ceiling considerably, however. Last year, Leal looked a little lost within his pass rush plan as he tried to figure out if he was a tweener, but now that he has trained for that role, Leal should be ready to step up. Don’t expect some uber-productive season, but Leal, if he puts it together like he should, could be a five-sack guy this upcoming season.
Coming into the season, consistency is the name of the game for Leal. Whether that comes to his pad level, his techniques when defeating double teams in the run game, or using his pass rush plan in a precise, calculated way, those need to come as leaps to make Leal the effective changeup rotational player he can be off the bench. The Steelers have starting aspirations for Leal at some point, and having that type of chess piece on the defensive line is valuable. Leal must prove he has taken more steps in his development over the offseason.
“When I first got here my rookie year, it was focusing on strictly inside, but then T.J. got hurt, so I expanded to inside and out,” Leal said. “There’s just a difference in techniques. I wanted to get rid of that college, just get up the field mentality. On the edge there, I needed to get that speed stuff down and win 4, 5, 0r 6 steps. I adjusted well. So, going into this offseason and knowing what to expect, I trained like I would be a tweener.”
Leal has a level of comfortability in his role. Sometimes, in football, you can underestimate just how much confidence and fast playing can do for a player. Leal looked lost near the end of the last season once he returned from his injury, as he alluded to above. Now, he is anything but lost, and the preseason tape was plenty impressive to think that Leal could make that leap occur.
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