Without a doubt All-Pro OG DeCastro is all-in despite COVID-19 pandemic
David DeCastro loves the game of football, loves the routine that goes with it, even if it has been altered beyond his comprehension because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
He is not worried about the risk that will surround him and other players if the NFL season goes on as planned in little more than a month. Nor did he give much consideration, if any, to opting out this season because “once you say you’re done and check out, you can’t really come back to it.”
DeCastro, a five-time Pro Bowl guard with the Steelers, is done trying to determine if there will be a season or what might happen if it is postponed. All he knows is that he’s all-in for playing in 2020, no matter the possibility of unexpected consequences.
“I’ve always had that mindset of being all-in,” DeCastro said Monday on a Zoom call. “Football being No. 1, it’s almost sort of a religious experience for myself. I love the game, I always have. It’s done
so much for me. It has to be all about football, attacking that day. It makes life a lot easier.”
Then, he added, “I like having the routine of playing football. I don’t know what I would do without it.”
DeCastro said his life with his family hasn’t changed much because of the COVID19 pandemic, and he doesn’t expect it to change much now that the Steelers enter their third week of training camp.
The Steelers, like the rest of the league, have a bubble surrounding their training camp. But they do not isolate their players once they leave Heinz Field or demand they quarantine at home, though they ask them to be smart about what they do once they leave the facility.
And that is perfectly fine for DeCastro, who wouldn’t want to do that if it meant being away from his wife and two daughters.
“I’ll be honest, I’m not too afraid; that’s just my personal opinion of it,” DeCastro said.
“I don’t know really much what you can do if it’s worth taking those risks to completely isolate yourself. To me, I don’t really see that as beneficial. I’d rather be with my kids and family and take that risk. I haven’t changed that at all.”
One thing DeCastro would like to change is the way the offense performed in 2019, when the Steelers ranked 30th in total yards in the league and scored only 10 touchdowns in the final 10 games. A large part of that was losing quarterback Ben Roethlisberger for the final 14 games because of elbow surgery. His absence affected the running game, which failed to have a back gain more than 500 yards in a season for the first time in 52 years.
“We take pride in the offensive line; obviously, we think we are pretty good,” DeCastro said. “But it is a team effort. Maybe you’re right, maybe we are getting a little old, but we still have some juice left in us. When we are not good as a whole, everyone is going to look bad. That is just the nature of it. I am not trying to put blame on anyone else. We had our bad play, that’s for sure.
“It was a tough year, especially when we are used to having great years. But, obviously, you lose a Hall of Fame quarterback and he’s getting paid a third of the salary cap, there is a reason they get paid that much.
“I’m not trying to discredit Mason [Rudolph] and Duck [Devlin Hodges]. They are capable players. But when you lose a guy like that, that’s tough.”
DeCastro, 30, enters his ninth season with the Steelers after being the 24th player selected in the 2012 draft. He is part of an offensive line that boasts two other former Pro Bowl selections — center Maurkice Pouncey (31) and left tackle Alejandro Villanueva (32 on Sept. 22).
The Steelers already lost one of their veteran starters to age when guard Ramon Foster (34) retired in the offseason.
But Villanueva, who will count $8,390,000 against the cap in 2020, will be a free agent after this season. DeCastro and Pouncey each have contracts that run through the 2021 season.
“I’m not ready to be done quite yet,” DeCastro said. “I’m getting there, but I still enjoy it, enjoy the routine and coming to work with these guys, [Maurkice] Pouncey and Al [Villanueva]. The group’s kind of fading away. We really have. The light’s coming at the end of the tunnel.”
But he doesn’t want that light to get even closer with a shortened or adjusted season. DeCastro said he stopped wondering what will happen because of the pandemic. He said he is focused on one thing — getting ready to play.
“I gave up predicting, being hopeful, optimistic, about four or five months ago,” he said. “This whole thing kind of blows your mind. It’s been a crazy year. At this point in my life, I tell everyone, I’m just taking it day-to-day, just trying to enjoy the routine of football.
“I’m open to anything. I know it could be shut down tomorrow. You could have a free-fall for the first time in 20 years. That’s pretty weird to a lot of guys who have been doing this for so long. It’s really screwed up everybody’s lives. What can you really do at this point other than watch, adapt and move on?”