The story of the 2025 Pittsburgh Steelers has been about surprising contributions from players that were universally viewed as afterthoughts for the majority of their careers. The emergence of guys like running back Kenneth Gainwell and cornerback James Pierre are the best examples of this phenomenon. But another name has quickly risen to the forefront, and that's Dylan Cook , an undrafted free agent from the 2022 cycle who at one point this season was sitting fourth-string on this team's depth chart. His ability to hold his own in the starting lineup is a big reason that the offense has played some of its best ball over the past few weeks.
Cook's long-awaited debut as a starter came in primetime against the Miami Dolphins , a contest in which he was lockdown in pass protection against fairly well-regarded pass rushers in two-time Pro Bowler Bradley Chubb and 2024 first-round pick Chop Robinson . On display was refined hand usage and the ability to anchor down on contact. Maybe the most surprising part was that the coaching staff trusted him enough to avoid sending significant help beyond the Steelers' base offensive-line-friendly scheme.
Last Sunday's victory in Motown was the group's best performance of the season, dominating time of possession and scoring 29 points in the process, while accumulating a season-high 481 total yards. Cook's showing in pass pro settings wasn't quite as clean, as he was charged with allowing four pressures on the afternoon and was deserving of partial responsibility for one sack off the edge. However, he made quite the impact in the run game, helping spring multiple explosive plays by getting to the second level to wipe out linebackers.
His next test will be his toughest, with Myles Garrett , the consensus Defensive Player of the Year, on deck. In the first matchup between these two teams, offensive coordinator Arthur Smith had a brilliant game plan to essentially cut the field in half away from the Browns' best player, a tactic other minds have copied since. Still, there will be at least a few times where he's going to be put in difficult assignments, and those reps will be where we learn the most about Cook's progress and shine a light on his potential moving forward. Not to state the obvious, but Garrett would surely love nothing better than to spoil the Steelers' postseason push and simultaneously break the all-time sack record in front of the home crowd.
Offensive line depth is an oxymoron in the NFL because we simply have fewer 6-foot-5, 300-plus-pound blockers than we do athletic freaks that opt to harass quarterbacks for a living. This explains why we see so many large, athletic human beings drafted high despite middling college tape and why we see so few in-season trades for backups at this position. Pittsburgh's coaching staff as a whole should feel elated, but often-scrutinized offensive line coach Pat Meyer deserves some kudos here as well. This is a situation that would crumble a lot of units across the league. Yet, it's somehow made the Steelers better.
Obviously, it's important for everyone involved—coaches, fans, and analysts alike—to not get too far ahead of our skis here given the small sample size. However, if Cook continues to ball out the rest of the season, it begs the question of what happens in 2026? Picking up Broderick Jones ' fifth-year option seems like a massive gamble given how that experiment has gone over the first three seasons. Perhaps the most logical solution would be to just have these two battle it out next year in Latrobe at training camp and may the best man win. It's worth pondering, but that's a discussion for another day.
Regardless, the Steelers have Cook under contract next season for the vet minimum. That's a bargain, plain and simple. Whether through pure luck or divine foresight, inking him to a multi-year deal back in May just might be enough to prevent Pittsburgh from having to invest another early pick at the position in April's NFL Draft, one in which they're hoping to use their accrued resources to acquire a franchise signal caller.
This season in the Steel City has been nothing short of a rollercoaster ride with plenty of unexpected twists and turns. None more surprising than the former high school quarterback-turned-lineman from Montana being an integral part of their pursuit to end their playoff win drought under head coach Mike Tomlin. Now, it's a feel-good story. Only time will tell if it concludes with a happy ending.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Now : Bell: Emergence of Dylan Cook Means Everything for Steelers
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