Sebastian Castro
Career Summary
Sebastian Castro is a defensive back from Oak Lawn, Illinois, who played at Iowa before entering the NFL as an undrafted rookie in 2025.
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Early Life
Castro was born October 14, 2000, and grew up in the Chicago area. His mother is Ruby Gonzalez, and he has Mexican heritage through grandparents from Zacatecas.
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High School
At Richards High School, Castro was a three-year football letterman at defensive back and quarterback. He earned all-state, all-conference and all-area recognition, while totaling 210 tackles, 11 interceptions and 2,872 combined passing and rushing yards in his high-school career.
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College Career
Castro appeared in 53 games with 32 starts at Iowa, totaling 163 tackles, 14 tackles for loss, 18 passes defended, five forced fumbles, four interceptions and two sacks. He played multiple roles including the leo/cash position and strong safety.
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Path to the NFL
Pittsburgh signed Castro as an undrafted free agent following the 2025 NFL Draft.
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NFL Career
Castro began 2025 on Pittsburgh's practice squad, joined Tampa Bay's active roster in September and appeared in one game before Pittsburgh claimed him back in November. He finished the year with seven Steelers appearances and two special-teams tackles.
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Career Accomplishments
Castro earned Pro Football Focus first-team All-America, Associated Press third-team All-America and second-team All-Big Ten recognition in 2023. In 2024, he was named to preseason watch lists for the Bronko Nagurski, Jim Thorpe and Chuck Bednarik awards and served on Iowa's player council.
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Playing Style
Castro is an energetic, physical down safety who excels near the line of scrimmage, with run-defense urgency and special-teams value. NFL scouting analysis characterized him as a scheme-dependent defender whose physicality can help in a safety role.
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Sources for this section
31152, 00-0040527, 2000-10-14, Sebastian Castro, Sebastian, Castro
MFT PLAYER RANKINGS
Current player ranking
MFT Score: 39.1
2026 preseason baseline. Position-relative and updated through the site’s weekly review process.