 DeCastro with thePittsburgh Steelers in 2016 | |||||||
| No. 66 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Guard | ||||||
| Personal information | |||||||
| Born | (1990-01-11)January 11, 1990 (age 35) Kirkland, Washington, U.S. | ||||||
| Height | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | ||||||
| Weight | 316 lb (143 kg) | ||||||
| Career information | |||||||
| High school | Bellevue(Bellevue, Washington) | ||||||
| College | Stanford (2008–2011) | ||||||
| NFL draft | 2012: 1st round, 24th overall pick | ||||||
| Career history | |||||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||
| |||||||
David William DeCastro (born January 11, 1990) is an American former professionalfootball player who was aguard for nine seasons with thePittsburgh Steelers of theNational Football League (NFL). He playedcollege football for theStanford Cardinal, earningunanimous All-American honors. He was selected by thePittsburgh Steelers in the first round of the2012 NFL draft, and he was considered one of the best guard prospects available.[1] He was a six-timePro Bowl selection with the Steelers.
DeCastro was born inKirkland, Washington.[2] OfSouth African descent,[3] DeCastro grew up inBellevue and attendedBellevue High School, where he was teammates withStephen Schilling.[4][5] He grew up aSeattle Seahawks fan, idolizingSteve Hutchinson.[6]
Also a standout athlete, DeCastro competed for the school'strack and field team as a shot putter. He got a top-throw of 17.93 meters at the 2008 Washington 3A-4A State T&F Championship, winning the event.[7] He also competed in thediscus (top-throw of 37.24 meters).[8]
Considered a three-star prospect byRivals.com he was listed as the No. 11 center in the class of 2008.[9] He chose Stanford over offers fromWashington,Washington State, andOregon State.
DeCastro attendedStanford University in Stanford, California, where he was a member of theStanford Cardinal football team from 2008 to 2011. He did not play in any games as a freshman in 2008. As aredshirt freshman in 2009 he started all 13 games at right guard. He was an honorable mention All-Pac-10 selection and a first-team freshmanAll-American byCollege Football News.[10] As a sophomore in 2010, he started all 13 games and was a first-team All-Pac-10 selection.[11] Following his junior season in 2011, he was again a first-team Pac-12 selection, and was recognized as a unanimous first-team All-American. Under head coachDavid Shaw, the Cardinal finished 11–2 in DeCastro's final season. Afterward, he decided to forgo his final season of college eligibility and enter the NFL Draft.
In October 2011,Sports Illustrated's Tony Pauline ranked him as the No. 17 prospect on his mid-season draft board.[12] As the season progressed, he solidified his status as a first-round draft pick.[13][14][15] He attended the NFL Combine and was said to have "excellent movement skills" and was able to complete all the drills and positional workouts. Although he participated Stanford's pro day, he decided to only do positional drills, as he was satisfied with his combine numbers.[16] He was ranked the best offensive guard byMike Mayock and NFLDraftScout.com.[17][18]
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft4+7⁄8 in (1.95 m) | 316 lb (143 kg) | 32+3⁄8 in (0.82 m) | 10 in (0.25 m) | 5.43 s | 1.84 s | 3.09 s | 4.56 s | 7.30 s | 29+1⁄2 in (0.75 m) | 8 ft 2 in (2.49 m) | 34 reps | |
| All values fromNFL Combine[19] | ||||||||||||
ThePittsburgh Steelers selected DeCastro in the first round (24th overall) of the2012 NFL draft. He was the first offensive guard taken in the first round by the Steelers sinceKendall Simmons in2002 and was one of four Stanford players taken in the first two rounds of the 2012 NFL Draft.[20]
On June 23, 2012, the Pittsburgh Steelers signed DeCastro to a four-year, $7.81 million rookie contract that also includes $6.35 million guaranteed and a signing bonus of $4.12 million.[21]
He entered training camp competing for a starting guard position with veteransWillie Colon,Ramon Foster, andTrai Essex.[22]
In the Pittsburgh Steelers' third preseason game against theBuffalo Bills, DeCastro suffered an injury and was forced to leave the game. After DeCastro was carted off the field, Steelers' head coachMike Tomlin stated that the injury was a "potentially severe" right knee injury. The injury occurred when he was engaged with Bills' defensive tackleMarcell Dareus and had his teammate, offensive tackleMarcus Gilbert, accidentally fell on his right leg.[23] It was discovered that he had suffered a torn collateral lateralligament and a dislocated kneecap.[24] On November 26, DeCastro was returned to the active roster, while Gilbert was placed on injured reserve.[25] On December 9, 2012, he made his professional regular-season debut in a 24–34 loss at theSan Diego Chargers. The next week, he earned his first career start during a Week 15 contest against theDallas Cowboys. He finished his rookie year starting the last three games of the2012 NFL season.
With the departure of Willie Colon and Trai Essex, DeCastro entered the season as thePittsburgh Steelers'de facto starter at right guard. He earned the start for the Steelers' season-opening 16–9 loss to theTennessee Titans. During the tenth play of the game, DeCastro accidentally whiffed during a cut block and fell down onto the back ofMaurkice Pouncey's right knee. Pouncey tore hisACL and was placed on injured-reserve for the remainder of the season.[24] He was replaced byGuy Whimper during the Steelers' Week 9 matchup with theNew England Patriots after suffering an ankle injury.[26] He finished the season starting 15 games and was ranked the fifth best right guard byPro Football Focus, as the Steelers finished 8–8 for the second year in a row.
DeCastro returned in 2014 to complete his first full season after starting all 16 games of the regular season as thePittsburgh Steelers finished 11–5. On January 3, 2014, he played in his first career postseason game as the Steelers lost in the AFC Wildcard to theBaltimore Ravens.[27]
On April 9, 2015, the Pittsburgh Steelers exercised the fifth-year option on DeCastro's rookie contract, paying him a salary of $8.07 million for 2016. He also received a $3.20 million signing bonus for 2016.[21]
In his fourth season with the Steelers in 2015, DeCastro started in all 16 regular-season games and was elected to his firstPro Bowl.[28][29]Pro Football Focus gave him an overall grade of 83.4 and ranked him the 15th-best offensive guard in 2015.[30] He was ranked the ninth best offensive guard bySports Illustrated after he surrendered only 1.5 sacks in 590 pass blocking attempts and was flagged for three penalties (allfalse starts) all season.[31]
On September 8, 2016, the Steelers signed DeCastro to an additional five-year, $50 million extension. The contract includes a signing bonus of $16 million. Together, both extensions bring his present contract to a six-year, $58.07 million deal including a total signing bonus of $16.00 million and signs him throughout 2021.[21][32]
He started all 16 regular season games and brought his consecutive games played streak to 56 in-a-row. ThePittsburgh Steelers finished first in theAFC North after achieving an 11–5 record in 2016.[33] They went on to defeat theMiami Dolphins in the AFC Wildcard, theKansas City Chiefs in the AFC Divisional, and lost the AFC Championship to theNew England Patriots. The Pittsburgh Steelers offensive line was ranked the third best byPro Football Focus, with DeCastro being ranked as the Steelers' top run blocker. He was named to his second-straight Pro Bowl for the 2016 season.[34] He was also ranked 97th on theNFL Top 100 Players of 2017.[35]
On December 19, 2017, DeCastro was named to his third-straight Pro Bowl along with fellow Steeler offensive linemenAlejandro Villanueva andMaurkice Pouncey.[36] He was ranked 44th by his peers on theNFL Top 100 Players of 2018.[37]DeCastro started and played in the first 15 games of the season and skipped week 17's game against theCleveland Browns because the Steelers' had clinched a playoff berth.[38]
In week 1 against theCleveland Browns, DeCastro fractured his right hand and was forced to miss the next two games against theKansas City Chiefs andTampa Bay Buccaneers. He was able to play again in week 4 against theBaltimore Ravens.[39]
DeCastro started and played in 14 games during the regular season.[40]On December 18, 2018, DeCastro was selected to play in his fourth straight Pro Bowl.[41]He received an overall grade of 71.7 fromPro Football Focus in 2018, which ranked as the 11th highest grade among all qualifying offensive guards.[42]
In week 11 against theCleveland Browns, Browns' defensive endMyles Garrett hit Steelers' quarterbackMason Rudolph on the head with Rudolph's helmet. Afterwards, DeCastro grabbed Garrett, pushed him onto the ground, and laid on top of him to prevent an even larger fight from escalating. After the game, Garrett himself praised DeCastro for his actions. The next day, it was announced that DeCastro would not be suspended for his actions in the brawl.[43]
DeCastro started and played in all 16 games during the regular season.[44]On December 17, 2019, DeCastro was selected to play in his fifth straight Pro Bowl.[45]
DeCastro was released by the Steelers on June 24, 2021.[46]
