Second- and third-year NFL players ready to break out in 2021: Defense edition

Alex Highsmith

EDGE – Alex Highsmith

(This was written before the Steelers signed free agent outside linebacker Melvin Ingram.)

We move on from a high first-round edge rusher two years ago to a late third-round pick from 2020, when the Steelers grabbed this guy 102nd overall out of Charlotte.

I had Highsmith as a fringe fourth-to-fifth rounder, in large part because it took him until his senior year to produce in the pass game in Conference-USA, but there were plenty of things that I liked about his game, in terms of the violence he played with and the fact he could go around, through, or inside of offensive tackles as a pass-rusher. So when Pittsburgh used that late day-two selection on him, I thought he’d be an excellent fit to add some depth to one of the premier defenses in the NFL.

However, he didn’t get to put up big numbers as a rookie, mostly because he didn’t get on the field a whole lot outside of special teams – at least early on. Over the first 11 games, Highsmith logged just 128 defensive snaps, which made up 18.5 percent of the total amount over that period of time. He earned some of that trust by hustling on kick coverage units, but as he got out there more on defense, he started to make an impression on that coaching staff and his teammates.

It took until late in that weird Wednesday night against a decimated Ravens squad for Highsmith to get more playing time when Bud Dupree unfortunately tore his ACL. Over those final five weeks, the rook showed a lot of positive signs, to the point where they felt comfortable with him stepping into a starting role and letting Dupree walk in free agency – although them being strapped for cap certainly played a factor in that as well.

He recorded one of his two sacks for the year over that stretch, but added five more hits on the quarterback and stopped the run at a high level to go with a somewhat game-changing pick-six at the start of the second half of that first Ravens game, when he was still a backup.

It was interesting to see how the coaching staff started trusting the 23-year-old more and more as the year went along, but he will now have to show that belief was justified, as he will be in the starting 11 and play a pretty significant role in year two.

Highsmith may be a tiny bit undersized at 6’3”, 248 pounds to consistently contact at the point of attack with big offensive tackles and hold his ground, but he has very quick hands to step around blockers and not allow flow to be created on those lateral run schemes.

However, when lining up over tight ends, he can bench-press those guys and take the inside path to establish first contact with the ball-carrier. He doesn't shy away from taking on pulling guards or throwing his body around either. To go along with that, he has the speed to chase guys down from the backside of wide zone runs and others on numerous occasions. And he displays an outstanding motor, chasing down screen passes from behind in impressive fashion.

Zoomed and slowed the Alex Highsmith spin move clip making the rounds today #Steelers pic.twitter.com/NyIpIXG7WM

— BlitzburghUSAVideos (@sdextrasmedia) July 28, 2021

What surprised me, however, for somebody who really was a true defensive end in college, was how quickly Highsmith started to be an asset dropping into coverage, quickly getting out to the flats or hook zones, as well as matching backs coming out and even taking tight-ends in man-coverage, either moving out to the slot with them or even trailing them stride-for-stride on deep crossing routes.

Going forward as a pass-rusher, Highsmith has the speed to really threaten around corner, plus he packs a nice dip-and-rip maneuver where he can get pretty low. He has the quick burst to create an angle for himself after looking like he’ll be caught in a stalemate, and he brings a sudden spin move to the table to complement that.

When he sees the tackle overset to the outside, to counter his speed off the edge, he can quickly take the inside path in general, which, at that point, the blocker will likely not get another hand on him, before he at least forces the QB off the spot. \

While he can’t really push guys all the way back into the quarterback’s lap, as those blockers usually find a way to re-anchor, he can create that initial movement or make up the rest of the way, if his blocker really retreats against him. I re-watched the Colts game, among others, where he rushed against the backup left tackle primarily, and if he wasn’t a rookie, he would have probably gotten two or three holding calls.

The Steelers also used Highsmith as a stand-up blitzer a few times as he got more comfortable in that defense, and he’s already pretty good at freeing up teammates on D-line games.

That being said, the second-year man still lacks discipline at times with his contain responsibilities from the backside, which was always a concern. He doesn’t quite have the ankle strength or overall power to always bend around those tight corners and flatten the quarterback, to where he needs to do a better of finishing, by continuing to work those hands and clear himself.

Working with T.J. Watt on those things will accelerate his growth, I believe, and he should get plenty of opportunities to rush one-on-one against tackles, with Cam Heyward and Stephon Tuitt covering up those inside gaps and drawing a lot of attention.

Highsmith will step right in for Bud Dupree and while he may not be as far along at this point, which it took the veteran a while to get to himself, I believe he can take advantage of playing on such a talented front, plus he offers more in terms of dropping into coverage than Dupree. That should only make that unit more versatile, as Watt took over a lot of those duties as well, as quarterbacks have to be alert for both potentially getting underneath what just looked like an automatic completion. This guy plays like a Steeler.