If you hear a football player talk about his team long enough, chances are that you’ll hear him refer to them as a family. The Pittsburgh Steelers are taking that to a literal level.
In the sixth round of the NFL Draft, the Steelers selected Michigan State’s Connor Heyward. Heyward is the younger brother of defensive tackle Cam Heyward.
With the 208th pick in the #NFLDraft, we select TE/FB Connor Heyward. #SteelersDraft pic.twitter.com/mMxiUneRSd
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) April 30, 2022
Having one pair of brothers on a team is notable. It’s not unprecedented but it’s far from common — at least for most teams. For the Steelers, it’s kind of another day at the office.
Because, as Nick Farabaugh of PHG Sports noted shortly after Heyward was drafted, the Cam and Connor are now the fourth pair of brothers on Pittsburgh’s roster.
Steelers now have 4 pairs of brothers on the roster with the selection of Connor Heyward.
– The Edmunds Brothers (Terrell, Trey)
– The Watt Brothers (T.J., Derek)
– The Davis Brothers (Carlos, Khalil)
– The Heyward Brothers (Cam, Connor)— Nick Farabaugh (@FarabaughFB) April 30, 2022
NFL fans loved the quirkiness of it all.
This is actually crazy lol https://t.co/HvfzfkT30t
— Lucas (@NotMikeTolbert) April 30, 2022
Building a family. https://t.co/pYmRFdCvxw
— Vernon Meighan (@FFB_Vern) April 30, 2022
This is wild https://t.co/GOalIf5axG
— The Mayor (@addyOklock) April 30, 2022
https://t.co/GVpD6fiNX6 pic.twitter.com/VMZ28JISQA
— Alicia Kirk (@aliciakirk05) April 30, 2022
tomlin is such a fiend for brothers lmfao https://t.co/vTBiNeamGK
— ً (@Mets2Hell) April 30, 2022
Someone else who loved it was Cam, who seemed excited about his new teammate and possibly roommate.
Guess I got a roommate @ConnorHeyward1
— Cam Heyward (@CamHeyward) April 30, 2022
Though, younger brother is apparently less than enthused with that idea.
Connor Heyward on living with brother Cameron Heyward: “I’ll live with my grandma before I live with Cam or I’ll get my own place.” @CamHeyward #Steelers #NFL
— Steelers Depot 7⃣ (@Steelersdepot) April 30, 2022
What’s interesting now is that the younger Heyward could end up battling for a roster spot with Derek Watt, as the two play the same position and most teams don’t carry two fullbacks. But given their commitment to making it a family affair in Pittsburgh, we can say that if any team can make it work, it’s the Steelers.
[Nick Farabaugh, Steelers Depot]