Proposed Trades See Steelers Lose Veteran Defensive Linemen

Getty Bleacher Report's Alex Ballentine proposed Mike Tomlin and the Pittsburgh Steelers trading defensive linemen Cameron Heyward or DeMarvin Leal.

In his latest NFL trade rumors story, Bleacher Report’s Alex Ballentine seemed very confident in the defensive line depth of the Pittsburgh Steelers. That’s because in two separate trade proposals, Ballentine suggested the Steelers move on from either Cameron Heyward or DeMarvin Leal.

First, Ballentine proposed the Detroit Lions acquire Heyward for a 2025 third-round pick.

“Heyward has been a Steeler for the first 13 seasons of his career, but the 35-year-old skipped a few OTAs in search of a new contract,” wrote Ballentine.

“The Steelers have rarely handed out contract extensions once the season starts, so they could be willing to listen to offers. A third-round pick is more than they’ll get if Heyward retires after this season, so it could be enough to get the Steelers to ship off the defensive lineman.”

Ballentine then proposed the Miami Dolphins send a 2025 fifth-round selection to the Steelers for Leal.

“The 24-year-old has struggled to make an impact in Pittsburgh through two seasons. He has just one sack despite six starts,” Ballentine added. “He was part of the Steelers plan early in the 2023 season, but played fewer than 10 snaps in every game beyond Week 8.

“Leal could be energized by a fresh start and the Dolphins need more intriguing players on the interior after losing Christian Wilkins in free agency.”

Heyward and Leal are two of 12 defensive linemen the Steelers have at training camp. One of those 12, though, Dean Lowry, is currently on the reserve/physically unable to perform list.

Could the Steelers Trade Former All-Pro Cameron Heyward?

Heyward has become a popular potential trade chip at Bleacher Report. In addition to Ballentine, Bleacher Report’s Kristopher Knox included Heyward on his list of top-10 NFL players who could be traded.

On that list, Knox also named the Lions a possible landing spot.

But the likelihood the Steelers trade Heyward appears very low.

If the Steelers wanted to move on from Heyward before 2024, they could have released him to save $16 million against the salary cap. While they wouldn’t have received trade compensation back in such a move, cutting Heyward in March would have opened up the opportunity for Pittsburgh to make a splash defensive line signing.

Trading Heyward now doesn’t do that, and it doesn’t make sense to trade the defensive captain for a draft pick ahead of a season where the Steelers expect to compete in the AFC North.

The Steelers could have also restructured Heyward’s contract to lower his cap hit this offseason. But the team didn’t do that either.

The Athletic’s Mark Kaboly argued in January that team president Art Rooney II sees Heyward as one of the franchise’s all-time greats. Kaboly also wrote that Rooney remembers his father regretting other franchise legends such as Franco Harris playing elsewhere at the end of their careers.

That doesn’t rule out the possibility of Cameron Heyward playing somewhere else next season if the Steelers are unwilling to offer the 35-year-old a new deal. But a trade seems out of the question unless something unusual occurs.

Should the Steelers Move on From DeMarvin Leal?

Leal, though, probably has a lot higher chance of getting traded. As Ballentine mentioned, Leal has struggled in two seasons with Pittsburgh. He spent the end of 2023 season as a healthy scratch in five games.

Five defensive linemen played more defensive snaps than Leal last season. Four of those players return for the Steelers this year.

There could be even less playing time for Leal this season. Second-year defensive lineman Keeanu Benton is expected to be featured in a bigger role during 2024. Heyward will also see more snaps if he’s healthy. Heyward sat out six games last season because of injury.

The question then becomes if Leal is more valuable to the Steelers as a depth option or a trade chip. To become either, Leal will have to perform much better at training camp this summer than he did last year when he showed up out of shape.

He appears to be doing that through the first week.

“Through the first two days of training camp, Leal has flashed quite a bit, showcasing intriguing athleticism on the inside and making plays in team sessions,” wrote Steelers Depot’s Josh Carney.