He was designated a starter on the official depth chart at the beginning of the season. By definition, he was demoted by the end of it.
On an expiring contract.
That’s typically not the type of player presented with a proposal for an extension. For that matter, a player in that situation more often wouldn’t want to come back to that team.
So why was veteran defensive lineman Montravius Adams so often wearing his ubiquitous smile around UPMC Rooney Sports Complex during recently completed Pittsburgh Steelers spring practices?
“I mean, playing football, you have to be willing to go along with the journey,” Adams said. “Sometimes you’re gonna be a starter, sometimes you’re not. At the end of the day, as long as I am doing what I need to do on the field so that I can take care of my family back at home, no problem. And as long as (protege Keeanu Benton) is growing and continuing to get better, no problem. And he’s continuing to do that. So I have no problem.”
Adams was removed as the starter at nose tackle late last season moreso because of the emergence of Benton than as an indictment of anything Adams did. A second-round pick, Benton has the look of a starter at the front of the Steelers defense for years to come.
That, by extension, leaves Adams as a backup.
But a funny thing happened as Adams approaches his 29th birthday. Not only did the Steelers bring him back under a third contract with the team, Adams got a raise.
“If I am being honest, there was some uncertainty at the end of the (season),” Adams said of his future. “But, at the end of the day, God got a plan, and we’re all where we need to be — where we’re supposed to be.”
For Adams, he’s felt as if Pittsburgh is where he was supposed to be from the moment he arrived in November 2021. The Steelers were his fourth team over that calendar year.
But Adams immediately became a starter and stabilized the Steelers’ defensive line. He was rewarded with a two-year, $5 million contract the following spring. Upon expiration of that this deal three months ago, he was presented with another two-year contract, this time for $5.25 million.
“I was so happy when I heard that,” Steelers defensive lineman Isaiahh Loudermilk said. “I was excited.
“He’s the guy I can go to him for anything. Talk to him about certain reps, just see how he sees I have been playing — pretty much just anything football-wise or not football-wise, you can go to him. He’s the type of person he will help you out no matter what situation it is.”
Even on a team and positional group that includes longer-tenured and higher-statured veterans Cameron Heyward and Larry Ogunjobi, Adams’ veteran presence was deemed worth keeping around by Steelers management.
“There’s a lot I can do, not even talking about on the football field, but in helping develop the guys around me,” Adams said. “As a person, that’s more of my character, aside from football: helping better people around me. That’s what I want to take on this year.”
On the field, Adams is an experienced and versatile piece available to supplement Heyward, Ogunjobi and Benton.
Last season, Adams had 24 tackles (11 solo, two for loss), a forced fumble and a batted-down pass in 13 games (eight starts). Despite missing almost five full games because of an ankle injury, Adams played the fourth-most snaps among Steelers defensive lineman in 2023, ranking second to Benton at nose tackle.
Adams plays any position in any package on the Steelers’ D-line in their scheme. But just as notable, perhaps, is his presence in the position room and on the practice field in a mentor-like role for teammates.
“It’s those little details,” Benton said. “If it’s a younger guy, he’ll chime in.”
Adams recognizes he is a go-between among Steelers defensive linemen from the longtime veterans and a younger core drafted by the Steelers between Rounds 2-6 each of the past four years.
“It’s going to be a fun season,” Adams said. “We’ve got a lot of guys who came back and grew up — and that’s what I am proud of. As a man.”
