Defensive Tackle · Pittsburgh Steelers

Keeanu Benton

No. 95 · 4th season

Four years in, Benton gets paid like he's the answer.

Keeanu Benton was a third-round pick in 2022 — the kind of selection that doesn't guarantee anything, that lands you in a crowded middle of the roster where you prove yourself or disappear. Two seasons later, the Pittsburgh Steelers handed him a four-year, $72 million extension.

That is not what happens to picks that don't pan out. That is what happens when a team believes it found someone. Benton had earned the trust enough that Pittsburgh was willing to lock him in now, betting that what they've seen on tape from the defensive line translates into years of production to come.

The deal is a statement from the Steelers front office: this player is part of what we're building. It's also a statement from Benton — he's accepted that this is home, that he's done proving he belongs. At some point a young player has to cash the bet they've been making on themselves. That moment just arrived.

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