Queen Brings It Early

by Bo Marchionte
@bomarchionte | College2Pro.com
Published July 24, 2025, 5:13 PM

Leave it to Patrick Queen to steal the moment and the ball without saying a word.

In the first team drill of the afternoon at Saint Vincent College, with the crowd focusing their eyes on Aaron Rodgers under center, Queen quietly crept into position. Then boom he jumped the route and intercepted the very first pass Rodgers threw during the team session.

“It felt good to get that one,” Queen said later, barely cracking a grin, “but I ain’t talking no trash.”

No celebration. No stare down. Just cool detachment, like a man clocking into work.

If Queen’s demeanor felt strange in the moment, it was because everything about it was calculated. The 25-year-old linebacker read the entire play like he had the call sheet in his hand.

“I saw DK (Metcalf) line up backside and I told myself I’m going to go right to him,” Queen explained. “I saw Jaylen [Warren] hesitate for a second. So, I just buzzed out right to him and turned around and the ball was on me.”

The ball was on him just like he knew it would be. Rodgers, still settling into a rhythm with his new squad, probably wished he would have had that one back.

That kind of awareness is exactly what the Steelers were banking on when they made Queen the centerpiece of their offseason defensive revamp a year ago. And on paper, this unit might be the most intriguing in the AFC this season.

Jalen Ramsey headline Darius Slay the veteran additions along with first-round defensive tackle Derrick Harmon.

But Queen doesn’t want any gold stars for winning July.

“I think if you like football, you can look at it,” Queen said, referring to the names on paper. “But at the end of the day, I do refer back to what happened last year. We were pretty stacked last year and we had a big fall off.”

“So, I think the biggest thing is just not getting too high with the people that we got. Just knowing that we got to bring it every single play, every single day… like I said yesterday, 1% better each and every day, and we’ll be fine.”

Rodgers will move on, the reps will pile up, and Queen will go back to doing what he does best studying, anticipating, executing. He might not talk trash, but he definitely talks with his play.

And if you’re a quarterback looking to test him early in practice, you better believe he already knows what you’re going to do.

Photo Credit Frank Hyatt/College2Pro.com