It's the time of year when honors are presented to players and that was the case when rookie defensive lineman Derrick Harmon and linebacker Patrick Queen were both honored by the Pittsburgh Chapter of Pro Football Writers of America.
Harmon won the Joe Greene Great Performance Award while Queen is the winner of 'The Chief' Award.
The Joe Greene Great Performance Award was established in 1984 and named after the legendary Hall of Famer and presented each year to the Steelers' top rookie.
"It's a privilege to receive this award," said Harmon. "To have your name next to Mr. Greene's, a guy like that, that's a privilege. So, I'm very excited and grateful."
Harmon is the first defensive lineman to win the Joe Greene Great Performance Award, something that is ironic since it is named after one of the greatest defensive lineman to ever play the game.
"He certainly has been an asset to us particularly in terms of defending and stopping the run," said Coach Mike Tomlin. "He's a first rounder. That's why you draft first rounders. He's really talented."
Despite missing five games due to injuries, Harmon has still been a dominant force for the defense.
"For me, it's kind of tough because I haven't been a type of guy that got injured a lot," said Harmon. "And I came to the NFL, and it happened twice in my rookie year, so it's kind of hard.
"But it's part of the game, so I've just got to stay optimistic and really just stay on course."
Keeping a positive approach has also been a key.
Harmon missed the first two games of the season with one knee injury and said it was tough staying positive then.
When he had to deal with his knee injury later in the season, missing three games, he said it was easier to deal with at that time.
"(The second) go around for me was just staying positive," said Harmon. "The first go around, I don't feel like I was really as positive. This one I tried to stay as positive.
"Just being in the building, showing up to meetings and still preparing like I'm still going to play the game. That's how I look at it."
Harmon was drafted in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft, the 21st overall pick, out of Oregon. Harmon spent one season with the Ducks, starting all 14 games in 2024 while earning second-team Associated Press All-America honors. He was also a second-team All-Big Ten selection by the media and third-team All-Big Ten by the coaches.
When he was drafted by the Steelers, Tomlin couldn't help but heap praise on his first round pick.
"He has Steelers DNA," said Tomlin. "For us it starts inside and up front. This is a guy that is capable of dominating that space versus the run and the pass. We are excited about having him. Really excited about getting him in here and getting started.
"There is no substitute for young talent. You don't have a chance to build a quality defense unless you are stout inside and up front. This is a guy that has an opportunity to learn from the likes of Cam Heyward and put his hand in the pile and be a significant contributor for us for years to come."
Joe Greene Great Performance Award Recipients
1984 - Louis Lipps, WR
1985 - Harry Newsome, P
1986 - Anthony Henton, LB
1987 - Delton Hall, CB
1988 - Warren Williams, RB
1989 - Carnell Lake, S
1990 - Eric Green, TE
1991 - Adrian Cooper, TE
1992 - Darren Perry, FS
1993 - Chad Brown, LB
1994 - Bam Morris, RB
1995 - Kordell Stewart, QB
1996 - Jon Witman, FB
1997 - Chad Scott, CB
1998 - Alan Faneca, OG
1999 - Troy Edwards, WR
2000 - Dan Kreider, FB
2001 - Kendrell Bell, LB
2002 - Kendall Simmons, OG
2003 - Troy Polamalu, S
2004 - Ben Roethlisberger, QB
2005 - Heath Miller, TE
2006 - Santonio Holmes, WR
2007 - Daniel Sepulveda, P
2008 - Patrick Bailey, LB
2009 - Mike Wallace, WR
2010 - Maurkice Pouncey, C
2011 - Marcus Gilbert, OT
2012 - Mike Adams, OT
2013 - Le'Veon Bell, RB
2014 - Martavis Bryant, WR
2015 - Bud Dupree, LB
2016 - Sean Davis, S
2017 - JuJu Smith-Schuster, WR
2018 - Terrell Edmunds, S
2019 - Devin Bush, LB
2020 - Chase Claypool, WR
2021 - Najee Harris, RB
2022 - Kenny Pickett, QB
2023 - Joey Porter Jr., CB
2024 - Zach Frazier, C
2025 - Derrick Harmon, DL
'The Chief' Award, which was established in 1988 in honor of Steelers' founder, Arthur J. Rooney, Sr., is presented annually to a member of the Steelers' organization that best exemplifies the spirit of cooperation with the media that he embodied.
Queen is in his second season with the Steelers after signing with the team as an unrestricted free agent from the Baltimore Ravens in the 2024 offseason.
From the get-go, Queen has made himself available to the media, in good times and bad, whether it be one-on-one interviews or group interviews multiple times a week.
Queen is also open and honest, providing insight and true emotion when he speaks.
He recently spoke about the frustration felt on defense when the Steelers were on an up-and-down trend, and how they came together as one, sharing unique insight into the players meeting and talking about it.
"Buffalo was the last straw," Queen shared a few weeks ago. "Everybody got off what they needed to get off and everybody was basically right Everybody was saying the same exact thing, that we just have to be accountable and do our job.
"It was a little bit of everybody. It was just basically, if you have something to say, say it. Guys just said what they had to say. It wasn't a 'come to Jesus' moment or everybody chewing each other out. It was just, 'Hey, this is how I see something,' 'this is how I see something,' and then everybody was like, 'Hey, how about we all do this?' It was a little bit of everybody just chiming in, saying what they had to say.
"We just come in each and every single day and try to be the best that we can. We try to communicate early in the week through meetings before we get on the field for walk-throughs, come back in, talk about it again, go to practice, just try to do the best that we can so we're all on the same page."
In addition to being there for the media, Queen is also always there for his teammates, especially some of the younger players, like second-year linebacker Payton Wilson.
"It's been really cool," said Wilson. "Last year, obviously, we were close, but not as close as we are this year. I was younger, just kind of a little quieter. But he's a great vet. One of the best linebackers in the game. I really enjoy the way he plays the game, the way he runs around, the way he hits, how excited he is.
"It's just the way you're supposed to play the game, and a lot of guys feed off of that.
"He's the quarterback of our defense. He does a really good job of knowing what the calls are supposed to be, what they're giving us. There's a lot of calls that change pretty quick and he's always on top of that."
Queen was also the Steelers nominee for the 2025 Salute to Service Award, presented by USAA annually to either a player, coach, alumni or staff member of an NFL team for embracing the pillars of the award, to honor, embrace and connect with service members.
Queen has and continues to do his part to help.
Since signing with the Steelers, Queen has been a big part of the team's military outreach efforts.
He has partnered with the Veterans Leadership Program (VLP), an organization whose mission is to provide military members with much needed assistance, by focusing on housing and career development to wellness and supportive services. Queen supported 100 veterans by providing them with hygiene kits, providing basic necessities they sometimes go without. He also spent time with the group, serving them breakfast so he could personally thank them and get to know them. It's a relationship that he is continuing to grow and build this season.
This year he is teamed up with Veterans Place of Washington Boulevard, whose mission is to empower veterans' transition from homeless to home, ending the cycle of homelessness, and to assist all at-risk veterans to become engaged, valuable citizens who contribute to their communities. He also supported 100 veterans by providing them with hygiene kits, a basic necessity they sometimes go without.
For the second straight year, Queen supported veterans' programs through the My Cause My Cleats program. This year he supported Veterans Place of Washington Boulevard.
If there is one thing he has, it's respect for all of them.
"All the stuff they went through in the past, and then them coming back home and the stuff they go through," shared Queen. "I feel like we don't take care of them enough.
"I feel like there are way more opportunities out there for us to be able to help them out when they come back, having places for them and better ways to help them transition away from that type of life that they had to live.
"This is the best country in the world. The freedom that we have, all of the stuff that we get to do that not most countries get to do and stuff. What I do is just a little token of appreciation."
'The Chief' Award Recipients
1988 - Dan Rooney
1989 - Dwayne Woodruff
1990 - Merril Hoge
1991 - Gerald Williams
1992 - Tunch Ilkin
1993 - D.J. Johnson
1994 - Rod Woodson
1995 - Levon Kirkland
1996 - Chad Brown
1997 - Darren Perry
1998 - Jerome Bettis
1999 - Lee Flowers
2000 - Jerome Bettis & Deshea Townsend
2001 - Lee Flowers
2002 - Hines Ward
2003 - Mike Logan
2004 - Jerome Bettis
2005 - Alan Faneca
2006 - Brett Keisel & Deshea Townsend
2007 - Alan Faneca
2008 - Ryan Clark
2009 - James Farrior
2010 - Ben Roethlisberger
2011 - James Farrior
2012 - Casey Hampton
2013 - Ike Taylor
2014 - Cameron Heyward
2015 - Ramon Foster
2016 - Arthur Moats
2017 - David DeCastro
2018 - Joe Haden
2019 - Cameron Heyward
2020 - Ben Roethlisberger
2021 - Cameron Heyward
2022 - Mason Cole
2023 - Patrick Peterson
2024 - Alex Highsmith
2025 - Patrick Queen
