Reunions can be splashy things, but they don’t always work out.
For every Led Zeppelin, Soundgarden, or Eagles, there’s a Van Hagar, Sex Pistols, or Velvet Underground. Just because you worked well together once upon a time doesn’t mean that you can recreate the magic.
Obviously, Mike McCarthy and Aaron Rodgers are hoping to wind up on the positive side of the ledger in their own reunion. They worked together in Green Bay from 2006 through 2018, and while McCarthy helped develop Rodgers as an NFL quarterback,
he also benefited from Rodgers at his best in the early 2010s, when Rodgers may have been the best pure thrower of the football we’ve ever seen.
Now, as Rodgers winds his career down, the whole thing is about getting the Steelers past the recent spate of mediocre seasons we’ve seen as of late. Mike Tomlin will have a bust in Canton someday, and the fact that he never had a losing record over 19 years is ridiculous, but stringing together a bunch of 10-7 seasons with wild-card playoff losses isn’t really the point in the Steel City.
“I felt last year might be it,” Rodgers recently said of his future. “And then Mike [McCarthy] got hired. I talked to the wife, and she said, ‘You can do one more year.’”
If Rodgers is to go out on a high note, and if McCarthy is to match the successes of his predecessors, everybody on the roster will want to step up — especially the guys whose names aren’t as familiar to the nation. To that end, I’ve identified three Hidden Gems for the 2026 Steelers — one underrated veteran, one underrated free-agent signing, and one underrated draft pick.
Underrated veteran: Center Zach Frazier
The Steelers already have more than their share of Pro Football Hall of Famers, and former center Maurkice Pouncey could find himself on that list someday. The nine-time Pro Bowler, two-time First-Team All-Pro, and member of the Hall of Fame All-2010s team retired after the 2020 season, and for a while, the center position was in flux without him. But in 2024, the team was smart enough to select West Virginia’s Zach Frazier with the 51st overall pick in the second round of the draft. Since then, center has not been a problem, no matter the quarterback.
Over his two NFL seasons, Frazier has allowed two sacks and 23 total pressures in 1,258 pass-blocking snaps, he’s become a true force as a run-blocker at 6’3” and 310 pounds, and he’s perfectly capable of sorting out line calls and protections pre-snap.
Something that impressed a certain Aaron Rodgers right away.
“Well, it starts with Zach,” Rodgers said before the 2025 season. “Zach is a highly intelligent player. It helps, because as much as I have a good feel for the offense, I’m not what I would call an expert yet. I become an expert when you break the huddle, and you can see the picture in your mind. Every now and then the picture’s a little fuzzy still, so I’m still working some things out, but Zach is so freaking smart. He’s making some calls for me. I told him, ‘Don’t get used to that.’ I said, ‘At some point, I’m going to be making the calls for you.’ He’s got a real good disposition for a center. He’s obviously a talented player, and I think his leadership is what I’d like to see most continue to grow, because the leadership often grows at the same rate as a performance, and everybody knows what kind of player he is. He’s going to have more opportunities to lead.”
Those leadership opportunities will continue as the Steelers’ offensive line shuffles everywhere but Frazier’s position in 2026. Tackle Troy Fautanu and guard Mason McCormick are moving to the left side from the right, and that right side is up for grabs with any number of options (including rookie guard Gennings Dunker and rookie tackle Max Iheanachor) in play.
However that shakes out, the Steelers have the right man in the middle, and you should expect Frazier to continue his ascent as one of the NFL’s best centers… because he’s there already.
Underrated free agent: CB Jamel Dean
Last season, the Steelers’ defenders lined up at either slot or outside cornerback allowed 140 completions on 249 attempts for 1,792 yards, 16 touchdowns, seven interceptions, 39 pass deflections, and an opponent passer rating of 88.6. Not one of the worst situations in the NFL, but not in the top five, either — and certainly not what Steelers fans are used to expecting when it comes to defensive excellence.
New defensive coordinator Patrick Graham is in charge of making things better in 2026, and the front office helped Graham out by signing former Tampa Bay Buccaneers cornerback Jamel Dean to a three-year, $36.75 million contract with $12 million guaranteed. That puts Dean pretty far down the list of average annual salaries for the position, and it could turn out to be an amazing bargain. Because when he’s allowed to do what he does, both in press and off coverage, the 30-year-old Dean still has it all together when it comes to coverage.
Last season for the Bucs, Dean allowed 25 catches on 54 targets for 311 yards, 105 yards after the catch, one touchdown, three interceptions, five pass breakups, and an opponent passer rating of 47.7 — the NFL’s lowest among corners who played at least 50% of their teams’ snaps.
“You guys know this better than I do, but first it starts with your division,” Graham recently said when asked what it means to have two cornerbacks in Dean and Joey Porter Jr. who can be physical players and press corners as well. “If you’re talking about a division where teams run the ball and have big receivers, it’s good business. Whether you’re talking about Cincinnati, you’re talking about Baltimore, or you’re talking about Cleveland, in terms of whether I’m talking about the receivers, the run game, that’s what our division is all about. So, I think it’s good business.
“It’s a highway-speed league. So, if you’ve got length, you’ve got speed, and then the fact that there’s some physicality to it, that’s always going to be good for us. Because no matter what we talk about, the spread, run game, the spread pass game, when it gets down to January, and in this division every week, it comes down to the physicality of the game, and you have to establish that.
“So, when you have corners that can tackle, that’s a bonus.”
Well, Dean also had 38 solo tackles, 10 stops, and two forced fumbles last season, so the 6’1”, 206-pound veteran has no issue getting grimy in the paint. Most importantly though, Dean’s tape shows a player conversant with breaking down any passing game concepts, and blowing it up. Dean’s value to the Steelers will be the perfect blend of acumen and athleticism, and that will show up right away.
Underrated draft pick: RB/FB/WR Eli Heidenreich
When we talk about versatile players in football, we are generally focusing on defensive linemen who can win from multiple gaps, linebackers who can also rush the passer at the line of scrimmage, or defensive backs who can credibly play multiple positions without embarrassing themselves. In this case, we’re talking about a running back and a receiver in the person of Navy’s Eli Heidenreich, who was one of the more interesting prospects in this class, regardless of position.
Frankly, I was shocked that the Steelers were able to steal him with the 230th overall pick in the seventh round. Heidenreich isn’t Christian McCaffrey or anything, but he should be able to do a lot of different things in Mike McCarthy’s offense if given the opportunity.
Heidenreich was a lightly-recruited prospect out of Allegheny County near Pittsburgh, and committed to Navy when he was offered in 2021. He started to show his versatility in the 2023 season, led the Midshipmen in receiving in 2024, and put his best season together in 2025, when he totaled 1,440 yards from scrimmage and nine total touchdowns. 499 rushing yards and three touchdowns came on just 77 carries, with 23 forced missed tackles, and nine runs of 15 or more yards. Then, as a receiver, he added 51 catches on 79 targets for 941 yards and six touchdowns, and he did all of that on a lot more than swings and screens. He’s got legitimate post, over, seam, and go routes in his palette from slot and wide deployments.
McCarthy has said that Heidenreich is getting the hang of the offense, and the rookie is very happy to be with his childhood favorite team.
“It was awesome,” he said after the selection. “I had the whole spectrum of emotions. It’s really been incredible. I am just thankful for the opportunity. I was born and raised a Steelers fan. The chance for me to go and put on that uniform and contribute to that team is unbelievable.
“I think the earliest moment for me that I can remember is watching the Steelers play the Cardinals in the Super Bowl (XLIII) and just watching that game and everything that took place for us to go out and win that Super Bowl, I think that was really when it started. I remember James Harrison, that play specifically, his 100-yard pick-six. I went and asked my dad shortly after that for a James Harrison jersey, which I got later on that summer. That’s kind of when it started.”
How it continues depends on how Heidenreich is deployed, but the tape shows someone who can make it go in a league that values positional versatility more than ever before.
Let us know what you think in the comments. Be sure to bookmark Behind the Steel Curtain for all the latest news, breakdowns, and more!
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