With an official listed weight of 309 pounds, rookie second-round pick Keeanu Benton is bigger than all of his peers on the Pittsburgh Steelers defensive line who return from last season.
Benton’s new coordinator, Teryl Austin, immediately said Benton would start at nose tackle, a position that suggests a run-stuffing specialist.
And popular opinion from draft analysts suggested Benton would fit best lined up over top of, or next to, the opposition’s center.
There’s reason to believe the run-stuffing ability of the powerful, stout Benton can show up immediately in the NFL.
But what about as a pass rusher? Could his potential in that area perhaps be a little overlooked?
“I feel like it is,” Benton said after a rookie minicamp session last week.
“But keep letting it be underrated. I’m going to let my stats talk.”
During college, Benton’s raw stats in that area don’t jump off the page, but the 4½ sacks and 28 pressures (the latter as measured by Pro Football Focus) Benton managed last season are solid.
Over four seasons and 45 games at Wisconsin, Benton accumulated nine sacks and 68 pressures.
“We are counting on him to be a run stopper,” Austin said, “and get some bonus out of him with being a pass rusher.”
That appears to be the plan for Benton as a rookie. Two of the five players who lined up at nose tackle for the Steelers last season are gone, and a third, perennial All-Pro Cameron Heyward, most likely will remain in a more conventional role.
A good model for Benton’s rookie usage could be Javon Hargrave, a player generally considered one of the NFL’s better interior defensive linemen (as evidenced by the four-year, $84 million contract bestowed upon him by the San Francisco 49ers this spring). Hargrave had 11 sacks for the Eagles last season.
As a rookie third-round pick for the Steelers in 2016, Hargrave was the team’s most-deployed nose tackle (168 snaps, per PFF).
This past season, Montravius Adams led the Steelers in snaps at the nose (123).
Like Hargrave, Benton played extensively for four seasons in college. As a bonus, while Hargrave’s reps were in the FCS, Benton played in the Big Ten.
“I think when you watch a guy that makes it all the way in four years (of college), you can see his game is a little more polished than maybe a young guy,” Austin said. “So you’re going to see his techniques are a little bit more refined.”
While growing up, Benton’s technique was refined not just on a field but a wrestling mat. Benton was a Wisconsin heavyweight state finalist with a 48-2 record as a junior at Craig High School in Janesville, a town almost at the midway point between Milwaukee and Madison.
“Wrestling helped me more with football (than the other way around), for sure,” Benton said. “That’s kind of why I wanted to do college football instead of wrestling. I feel like I can wrestle on the football field.
“I can underhook and throw somebody. I can slam people when I want to, and I also like to hit, so I feel like you get the best of both worlds with football.”
Benton said he began wrestling in sixth grade, two years before he began playing football. During college, he took the Wisconsin defensive lineman position room to the school’s wrestling gym to convey some tips on leverage and winning one-on-ones.
Eventually, the Badgers outside linebackers followed, in part at the behest of Nick Herbig, the Steelers’ fourth-round pick.
“It was more like balance and changing levels,” Herbig said. “Making sure you have good leverage on somebody, rolling your hips through.
“That guy (Benton) is a heck of a wrestler. I’d never wrestle him for real.”
The Steelers are hoping — and believing — that opposing NFL interior offensive linemen will be feeling the same way.
Be it his sheer size combined with a brute strength, the lengthy college football experience or even the refined techniques owed to his wrestling background, Benton has the look of a player who might be able to punish opposing guards and centers for years to come.
Does Benton take pride in delivering punishment to those trying to block him?
“I do,” he said, allowing the quick flashing of a proud smile. “Best part of my game. I love to be physical.”
Hey, Steelers Nation, get the latest news about the Pittsburgh Steelers here.
Chris Adamski is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Chris by email at cadamski@triblive.com or via Twitter .
"follow" - Google News
May 21, 2023 at 01:28AM
https://ift.tt/6l4JPYO
Big, powerful Keeanu Benton could follow Javon Hargrave model as rookie DL for Steelers - TribLIVE
"follow" - Google News
https://ift.tt/0fhjiyF
https://ift.tt/s145IED
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Big, powerful Keeanu Benton could follow Javon Hargrave model as rookie DL for Steelers - TribLIVE"
Post a Comment