In an anonymous ESPN survey, NFL executives tabbed Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Patrick Queen as the fourth-best off-ball linebacker in the NFL. Queen was ranked behind Matt Milano, Roquan Smith and Fred Warner on the list.
“Pittsburgh’s linebacker tradition is rich, but the team rarely spends top dollar in free agency. By giving Queen a three-year, $41 million deal in March, Pittsburgh effectively plucked a star out of rival Baltimore while reimagining the middle of its defense. Queen did a little bit of everything for Baltimore, racking up 133 tackles, 3.5 sacks and 6 pass deflections. Closing speed and blitzing ability,” an AFC executive said. “He’ll make a big impact on Pittsburgh’s defense.”
Queen, who stands at 6-foot, 230-pounds, does not have the size of typical Steelers players at the position, but he makes up for it with blistering speed. Queen ran a 4.5-second 40-yard dash and posted a 10-foot-5 broad jump at the 2020 NFL Combine.
Queen is expected the green-dot communicator for the defense, as he was in Baltimore.
“He’s an all situations linebacker, and so that’s exciting,” Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin said about Queen. “He’s a guy that’s a three-down player. He’s a guy that can do a lot of things, can tackle, can cover, can blitz and he’s 24 and a half years old, so he’s got that great combination of youth and experience and I think those are some of the reasons why we are really excited about bringing him on board and can’t tell you how exciting it is just because of the familiarity, as well. We’ve seen a lot of him, he’s seen a lot of us and it’s going to be an exciting marriage.”
Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Patrick Queen at OTAs, May 28, 2024 – Ed Thompson / Steelers Now
The Baltimore media has constantly bashed Queen since he signed with the Steelers in March. The main narrative is that Queen won’t be the same player without Roquan Smith by his side.
“I don’t know if (Queen) can be the guy without Roquan Smith. … I think Steelers Nation is going to be a little bit disappointed,” Rob Long of 1.057 The Fan in Baltimore said on 93.7 The Fan in March.
An NFC executive also has his doubts whether Queen will be elite in Pittsburgh.
“A few veteran NFL coaches said that while Queen is a physical run player and solid in man coverage, he misses plays he should make in “match” zone coverage. Lack of instincts might show now that he’s not playing next to Superman [Roquan Smith],” the NFC exec said.
