Sixth round: Gabriel Rubio, defensive tackle, Notre Dame
With the 210th overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, the Steelers have selected defensive lineman Gabriel Rubio out of Notre Dame.
Rubio, 22, is 6-5 and 321 pounds. As with any of the defensive linemen on the roster, Rubio is viewed as an interior defensive lineman that can play multiple techniques, though he'll likely better fit as a nose tackle. His father, Angel Rubio, was a defensive lineman that was also drafted by the Steelers in the seventh round of the 1998 NFL Draft.
"Effort and persistence are all things that can be taught, but are great in value," Rubio said, via conference call, about what he learned from his father. "Definitely one thing about my game that I've always remembered from him is run to and through the pile, not just around it."
Rubio did not attend the Combine, and he's not on Pro Football Focus' big board, so he's virtually an unknown for a lot of people. Defensive coordinator Patrick Graham said they know more about him because of their scouting department.
Rubio was a four-star recruit out of Lutheran of St Charles County High School in St. Peters, Mo. He dealt with a broken elbow and torn UCL in 2025, but had surgery and has no limitations coming off the surgery. The Steelers aren't concerned about the injury and are excited to being in another big body to throw into the mix up front.
"It's crazy. No matter how many years you've been playing, we've been having this game of football, if you're really big, you're really long, somebody's going to find out about you," Graham said. "That's usually the case. So when you watch the [Notre Dame] tape, they got a bunch of players going to the league everywhere. You're like, 'Who's this big, tall guy right here, who's playing?' Thankfully for us, our scouts hit the road and they work it hard."
THE ASYLUM
Sixth round: Gabriel Rubio, defensive tackle, Notre Dame
With the 210th overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, the Steelers have selected defensive lineman Gabriel Rubio out of Notre Dame.
Rubio, 22, is 6-5 and 321 pounds. As with any of the defensive linemen on the roster, Rubio is viewed as an interior defensive lineman that can play multiple techniques, though he'll likely better fit as a nose tackle. His father, Angel Rubio, was a defensive lineman that was also drafted by the Steelers in the seventh round of the 1998 NFL Draft.
"Effort and persistence are all things that can be taught, but are great in value," Rubio said, via conference call, about what he learned from his father. "Definitely one thing about my game that I've always remembered from him is run to and through the pile, not just around it."
Rubio did not attend the Combine, and he's not on Pro Football Focus' big board, so he's virtually an unknown for a lot of people. Defensive coordinator Patrick Graham said they know more about him because of their scouting department.
Rubio was a four-star recruit out of Lutheran of St Charles County High School in St. Peters, Mo. He dealt with a broken elbow and torn UCL in 2025, but had surgery and has no limitations coming off the surgery. The Steelers aren't concerned about the injury and are excited to being in another big body to throw into the mix up front.
"It's crazy. No matter how many years you've been playing, we've been having this game of football, if you're really big, you're really long, somebody's going to find out about you," Graham said. "That's usually the case. So when you watch the [Notre Dame] tape, they got a bunch of players going to the league everywhere. You're like, 'Who's this big, tall guy right here, who's playing?' Thankfully for us, our scouts hit the road and they work it hard."
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