'That’s my rock, that’s my why': Mother of Pittsburgh Steelers 1st-round pick Derrick Harmon dies

The mother of Pittsburgh Steelers first-round draft pick Derrick Harmon has died. Tiffany Saine reportedly passed away not long after her son was taken by the Steelers with the 21st selection in the NFL Draft late Thursday night.

Less than a half hour after Harmon was picked Thursday, he told Pittsburgh reporters via conference call that Saine was on life support and he was headed to the hospital to see his mother.

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“On behalf of the entire Pittsburgh Steelers organization, I extend our deepest condolences to Derrick Harmon and his family during this difficult time,” read a statement attributed to Steelers president Art Rooney II. “Though we are excited to select Derrick in the first round of the NFL Draft, our hearts are heavy as we mourn the death of his mother, Tiffany Saine. We will support Derrick and his family however we can as he navigates this period of grief. In times like this, we hope Derrick finds comfort in the love and support from the organization and Steelers fans around the world.

“Our thoughts and prayers will continue to be with Derrick’s entire family.”

The precise cause of death has not been divulged, but it had been known Saine was dealing with health problems for several years. Harmon said that Saine had undergone approximately eight brain surgeries while Harmon was growing up. During a sitdown with ESPN prior to the draft, Harmon said his mother had a stroke about three years ago that had left her paralyzed on her left side.

Derrick Harmon’s journey to becoming the 21st overall pick by the Steelers was driven by the strength of his mom Tiffany ❤️ pic.twitter.com/rN4p5TavQq

— ESPN (@espn) April 25, 2025

“My mom means everything to me,” Harmon said. “That’s my rock, that’s my ‘why.’ ”

A Detroit native, Harmon played his first three college seasons less than an hour away at Michigan State. It wasn’t until a stellar 2024 season at Oregon — which entered the College Football Playoff undefeated and ranked No. 1 — that Harmon became a high-level NFL draft defensive tackle prospect.

Harmon called transferring to a school on the west coast — away from his mother — “probably the hardest decision I had to make.”

“I sat down with my mom, and we had a discussion and she told me every decision I had made up until this point was for her and this time make a decision for myself,” Harmon told ESPN. “I carried that through my whole process of going 2,000 miles away to Oregon.”

During his conference call with media late Thursday night, Harmon got choked up when discussing his mother.

“She worked just as hard as me to get to this moment, but it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience,” he said. “I’m going to head to the hospital and tell her that her son got drafted.”

Harmon, 21, was en route to Pittsburgh late Friday afternoon, but a scheduled news conference introducing him to local media was postponed.

On Thursday night, Harmon lauded his mother’s resiliency.

“After all those brain surgeries, she did not give up,” Harmon said. “She still took me to practice, still went to work. And I always, always got in the back of my head, from the beginning of my college career, was, ‘Why can I keep going if I’m tired, I’m injured, whatever it is, why can I keep going, if she can get up and she can keep going after brain surgery.’ So, just her resilience, and hard work.”