Steelers' Legend Brett Keisel States Cam Heyward Has Already Earned A Place In The Hall Of Fame Heading Into His 13th Season

The Pittsburgh Steelers drafted Cam Heyward out of Ohio State in the first round of the 2011 NFL Draft. Heyward was drafted by the Steelers after they lost the Super Bowl XLV against the Green Bay Packers and was glued to the bench behind Brett Keisel, Aaron Smith and Evander Hood during his first two seasons. Heyward joined Keisel in the starting lineup in 2013 and he has been a fixture ever since.

Brett Keisel joined The PM Team W/Poni & Mueller show on Tuesday to discuss his former teammate and how his career has evolved from a young player who took three seasons to break into the starting lineup to become the Steelers’ defensive captain and elder statesman.

“Coach Mitch (John Mitchell) just recently retired from the Steelers, and he told me the number one thing you need to be as a pro is consistent,” Keisel began. “Your consistent play has to match up and that is what Cam has been for the last decade. He is consistent, he’s dominant the fact that he’s third all-time or second, I don’t know in sacks all-time in Steeler history as a defensive tackle is unbelievable.”

Steelers Cam Heyward Does Not Lack National Recognition Discourage Him On His Rampage Through The NFL

One thing that has hurt Heyward in gaining recognition throughout football as the dominant player he has been being that he plays defensive end in the 3-4 defense. Steelers’ defensive ends in the scheme are glorified defensive tackles as Keisel astutely points out. The rest of the NFL is catching on as Heyward was named the second-best interior defensive lineman behind only Aaron Donald before the 2022 season began.

“He is just a wrecking crew,” Keisel continued. "You really have a hard time blocking him, you constantly have to have two guys on him. If you single-block him he is going to win. Going into year 13 I thought Cam was dominant. I didn’t see a lot of guys blocking him and he didn’t get pushed around much.”

Heyward illustrated Keisel’s point in the season opener last season when the Cincinnati Bengals made the mistake of asking rookie Cordell Volson to deal with the Steelers’ defensive captain and he wreaked havoc. He was a massive part of the Steelers’ 23-20 victory over the defending AFC Champions. In the final game of the season, with the playoffs on the line, Heyward took over again producing two sacks and was virtually unblockable during the crucial moments on defense that day. He started his first and last games in his 12th NFL season as the same dominant force. 

The two sacks brought his season total to 10.5 and his career total to 78.5 sacks. It put him one ahead of TJ Watt and two behind James Harrison. Heyward is a virtual lock to pass Harrison next season and may even beat Watt to occupy the top spot in franchise history, however briefly, next season. Based on the age difference Watt is destined to end his career as the franchise sack leader and could be the first Steelers player to reach 100 sacks in franchise history.

“I’m a huge 97 fan,” Keisel concluded. “You think about how much he gets doubled. He is going against two, three guys in the trenches. He doesn’t get the recognition he deserves. He’s so cool, he doesn't really talk about it. I have no doubt he is a Hall of Famer. There hasn’t been anyone in the last seven or eight years that has gone into the Hall of Fame that has blocked him consistently. That’s always been my argument with Deebo (James Harrison). Put the tape on with any Hall of Famer who goes in and show me some guy that blocks him consistently.”

Keisel’s Hall of Fame standard is a good argument that is sadly lacking whenever the committee gathers to discuss who is going to Canton. Heyward has put together an almost undeniable career in the eyes of Steelers fans for the Hall of Fame but so did Hines Ward, James Harrison and LC Greenwood to just name a few. The Steelers have a legitimate backlog of Hall-worthy candidates that hopefully will be broken before the induction of Ben Roethlisberger and fingers crossed for their long-time defensive captain.