by Bo Marchionte
@bomarchionte | College2Pro.com
Published August 21, 2026, 11:51 PM

CARSON BRUENER: THE SACK WAS ONLY HALF THE PLAY

Pittsburgh, PA – Carson Bruener’s draft evaluation was basically a warning label.

NFL.com gave him a 5.68 prospect grade entering the 2025 NFL Draft a player projected toward the bottom of an NFL roster or a practice squad.

The concerns centered on whether the Washington linebacker had enough functional speed and athleticism to survive beyond the box. Pittsburgh took him anyway, 226th overall in the seventh round.

A year later, that evaluation is already aging poorly.

Bruener didn’t simply make Pittsburgh’s 53 as a rookie.

He dressed for all 17 games and became one of the better young special-teamers in football, recording 19 special-teams tackles tied for 10th in the NFL on his way to the PFWA All-Rookie Team.

Defense was another story. He played exactly one defensive snap during the regular season.

One.

That’s what makes Year 2 interesting.

The Steelers already know Bruener can chase, hit and survive in the violent little world of special teams. Now they’re finding out how much linebacker might be hiding underneath it.

Friday night offered a pretty damn good clue.

Bruener was showing up around the football before his biggest play arrived. His read-and-react looked faster. He angled into tackles without wasted movement. There was less searching and more seeing it, triggering and arriving.

Then Pittsburgh dialed up a blitz.

Bruener disguised it.

The Jets hard-counted.

He didn’t tip it his disguise.

“I knew I was one on one on the back,” Bruener said. “So, I was able to time up the blitz, go through him, get the sack.”

In that moment, Bruener didn’t celebrate. He directed his defense immediately into the next set.

Bruener got up and essentially forgot about the sack.

No pose.

No extended celebration.

The clock was running.

“The thing is, clock’s still rolling,” Bruener said. “No time lasts for a call.”

Bruener immediately turned toward the defense and started getting everybody lined up for the next snap.

That’s the part worth rewinding.

“There’s people that will celebrate and be over there, but somewhere they’re about to snap the ball again,” Bruener said. “So, we had to get back, had to get the play, communicate to everyone.”

That’s not rah-rah leadership. That’s processing.

Bruener understood the situation, understood the clock and understood that the sack he just made was already irrelevant if Pittsburgh busted the next assignment because everyone was busy celebrating it.

So, he handled the business first.

“I don’t need to celebrate, man,” Bruener said. “At halftime we came in. People say, ‘Hey, good job.’ I’m like, ‘Thank you, thank you.’ So yeah, that’s how it is.”

There’s something wonderfully cold about that.

A year ago, Bruener arrived as Pick No. 226 with an NFL scouting report questioning whether his athletic profile translated beyond special teams. He answered by becoming an All-Rookie special-teamer.

Expect him to continue to grow and mold into a real contributor for the Steelers.

This season.

 

Photo Credit Frank Hyatt/College2Pro.com