From one set of black and gold to another.
Iowa defensive tackle Logan Lee was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the sixth round of the 2024 NFL draft. Pittsburgh chose Lee with the No. 178 overall selection.
During his Hawkeye career, Lee racked up 158 tackles, 18.5 tackles for loss, nine sacks and seven pass breakups. The 6-foot-5, 281 pound defensive lineman appeared in 43 games with the Hawkeyes and started all 41 over the past three seasons.
Lee registered nearly 50 tackles, five tackles for loss and three sacks in each of the past three seasons for the Hawkeyes.
With the 178th pick in the 2024 #NFLDraft, we select DE Logan Lee. pic.twitter.com/U16c3MaQjK
— Pittsburgh Steelers (@steelers) April 27, 2024
Lee heads to a Steelers defense that ranked 21st in total defense last season, surrendering 342.1 yards of total offense to opponents per game. Pittsburgh ranked 17th in passing defense and 19th in rushing defense, allowing 227.1 and 115.1 yards per game, respectively.
“Just came with an unusual maturity. He’s been a good guy that way. He’s like a lot of guys, going through the hardships. He’s had injuries, surgeries, which again people forget about what these guys go through physically. The hard work involved coming back from rehab. He’s done all that. Always had a great attitude, and it continues to grow, great leader.
“To your point, like when he came out, we weren’t sure what he was. We knew he was a football player, we just didn’t know what. It’s been fun to watch him go from a guy who’s a little bit robotic and mechanical early in his career to being a really good football player and a really good defensive lineman. You can’t do it if you’re not on the field. He missed a lot of time and playing catch-up. But, boy, he’s played really well now for a couple of years. We’ll miss him on a lot of levels, his leadership, besides being a great player,” Iowa head football coach Kirk Ferentz said of Lee back in November.
Lee joins a Steelers squad that also drafted Washington offensive guard Troy Fautanu in the first round, West Virginia center Zach Frazier in the second, Michigan wide receiver Roman Wilson and North Carolina State linebacker Payton Wilson in the third, South Dakota State offensive guard Mason McCormick in the fourth and Texas cornerback Ryan Watts in the sixth.
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