As a veteran pass rusher, Markus Golden has made a modest impact on the Pittsburgh Steelers this season. He finished third on the team with four sacks despite playing just 22% of the defensive snaps.
As a locker room presence, his impact has been incalculable.
At least that is the opinion of teammate Alex Highsmith.
Golden’s words of wisdom have stuck with Highsmith, whose own production at rushing the quarterback was cut in half in 2023.
“Just be myself and continue to keep hunting,” said Highsmith, who had seven sacks this season after collecting a career-high 14.5 in 2022. “That’s what Markus always says: No matter what, keep hunting and keep rushing. Know the sacks are going to come and keep getting after it and keep rushing.”
Golden will get a chance to put his knowledge to good use when the Steelers open the postseason with a wild-card matchup Sunday against the Buffalo Bills in Orchard Park, N.Y. The 32-year-old outside linebacker could make his first start for the Steelers, who will open the playoffs minus former NFL defensive player of the year T.J. Watt.
Either Golden or rookie fourth-rounder Nick Herbig will start alongside Highsmith against the Bills. Both players figure to get plenty of snaps on the left side of the Steelers’ 3-4 defense, with Highsmith manning the right.
Watt, however, will be watching from the sideline.
“Your best player on your team, you want to be able to take him out there,” Golden said Wednesday. “You hate to see T.J. go down. I’d rather have him out there because I know we can win with him. But I know he’d want me to go out there and go hard. He’s helping me already this week. I’ll go out there and play hard.”
To hear teammates tell it, Golden has taken that approach since he signed a one-year contract with the Steelers in May when the team already was deep into offseason workouts.
“Markus always brings energy,” defensive captain Cameron Heyward said. “He’s a guy who understands his role and is ready for his moments. A clear example is the Colts game (a 30-13 loss). We were down but Markus never stopped playing with energy. He provides leadership in the room — how to be a veteran, how to do a lot of things under the radar.”
The Steelers were in search of such tangible and intangible qualities after they got little production last year from backup outside linebackers Malik Reed and Jamir Jones. That led them to bringing aboard Golden, who has 51 career sacks in nine NFL seasons, and taking Herbig in the middle of the draft.
“We’re as deep at that position as we’ve been in some time,” coach Mike Tomlin said. “We’re comfortable with the quality of depth.”
Golden has reached double digits in sacks three times in his career, the most recent coming in 2021 with Arizona. He hit the free agent market after starting 14 games last season, but had to bide his time until the Steelers courted him.
“They’ve taken me in and helped me out since day one,” Golden said. “That makes me want to do my job no matter what. Whether I’m a starter or a backup, I come in and prepare like I’m going to play a lot of plays.”
The heavy workload never manifested itself for Golden in the regular season. He never played more than 37% of the defensive snaps in a game and even was a healthy scratch when the Steelers played the New England Patriots in December.
Still, Golden has produced when called upon. In addition to his four sacks, he has 10 quarterback hits, a pass breakup, six tackles for loss and a fumble recovery. In the fourth quarter of the season finale at Baltimore, Golden did a fair Watt impression by recovering a fumble that set up a field goal and getting a sack late while the Ravens were trying to cut into a 17-7 deficit.
“Every week I go hard, and I make sure I’m prepared no matter what is happening,” Golden said. “This is my first year being a backup, so I’m not used to sitting back. I’m always going. I’m always preparing myself like I’m the starter. I’m a self-starter. I know I have to be ready no matter what.”
Golden also wants his teammates to feel the same since of urgency. He played for teams that made the postseason just twice in his first eight NFL seasons, and his lone playoff victory came in 2015.
“Just lock in and be ready,” he said. “Make sure you take every day seriously, make sure you’re taking your plays seriously so when you go out there, you know what you’re doing,” he said. “You’re not going to get this opportunity every year, so you want to go out there and compete at a high level.”
