The Steelers were last in the NFL against the run last season. They're not about to do that again.
In the offseason, much of the focus on the defensive side of the ball was bolstering the defensive front. Yes, this team has the best defensive player of the year in T.J. Watt and one of the best interior lineman in football in Cam Heyward. But they need more. That's why they added Larry Ogunjobi in free agency and drafted DeMarvin Leal out of Texas A&M in the third round of the NFL Draft.
Add in the return of Tyson Alualu from injury, and guys like Chris Wormley, Montravius Adams and Isaiahh Loudermilk to round out the group. That's a much better collection than they had one season ago, even after dealing with Stephon Tuitt's sudden retirement.
In Sunday's overtime win over the Bengals, the Steelers had to rotate many players on defense due to the sheer volume of snaps. Loudermilk was the only one to not get a helmet, but every one else had to step up. The Steelers and Bengals played five full quarters, and the defense had to be on the field for over 100 plays. The defense needed everybody in uniform to step up and play quality football.
"We have really good depth," Teryl Austin said Thursday at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex. "We were thinking that coming out of camp healthy that we had a really good, deep defensive line, and we would be able to give guys breaks so that we were fresh and healthy down the end. When you looked at us and the way we played, we played hard and we got after it up until play 102 or whatever it was. That’s a testament to the depth that we have and the quality of players we have up front."
What's more, they did it while almost exclusively running with two down linemen. Outside of a fourth-and-1 and goal line situations, the Steelers had only two defensive linemen in just about every play. Whether it was a nickel or dime package behind them, it didn't matter. The Steelers' front, with obvious contributions by Watt and Alex Highsmith, dominated the line of scrimmage.
The defense was consistently in Joe Burrow's face, and ended up sacking him seven times. Joe Mixon may have had 82 rushing yards, but he needed 27 carries to get to that mark (3.0 yards per carry). And without a 31-yard scamper, Mixon's line would have been 26 carries for 51 yards -- not even two yards per carry.
Ironically, the 31-yard run came on the aforementioned fourth-and-1 play, and put Cincinnati down inside the Steelers' 5-yard line.
But, let me say this again, they did it with only two down linemen. And it wasn't just Heyward and Ogunjobi or Heyward and Alualu. Wormley, Leal and Adams were all in there frequently, and none of them looked overmatched. Even if they were making tackles or sacking the quarterback, they were doing the little things to disrupt the pocket and make it more difficult for Burrow to remain comfortable or for Mixon to find holes in the run game.
"That’s always important for your team. It’s a 17-game season," Austin said. "You want to make sure you develop that depth behind guys because we know guys like T.J. and Alex, the way they play, they play hard. It’s hard for them to play every play. Same thing with the inside guys. So, you’ve gotta develop quality depth, and I think we have that."
Obviously, anyone wants to have their best players on the field. Every time Heyward is holding his helmet on the sidelines, the immediate reaction for everyone is: "Why?! Is he injured?!"
But, keeping him healthy is paramount. The Steelers already have to deal with the loss of Watt for at least four games as he was placed on the injured/reserve list Thursday morning. Part of keeping your best players healthy is managing their workload.
"I’m always up for every guy being on the field, everybody getting used to the game," Heyward said Thursday. "We’ve all gotta stay healthy. We understand it’s a 17-game season. It’s a lot on our bodies. It’s not a pride thing. We’ve gotta make sure we take care of ourselves."
As we saw in 2021, poor defensive line play has rippling effects on the rest of the defense. Being able to rush the passer and stop the run while running only two down linemen most of the time allows the linebackers to be in better positions to make tackles, and allows an elite playmaker such as Minkah Fitzpatrick to terrorize offenses as he did against the Bengals.
"That's just Minkah," Austin said of his safety's performance. "It didn't surprise me that he played like that."
Yep. Because now, Minkah doesn't have to support the run game like he did in 2021 when he registered a team- and career-high 124 tackles. He's free to be the guy the Steelers want him to be.
Now, the Patriots come to town. And if there's any head coach that's not going to make it easy on a team, it's Bill Belichick. The Patriots finished eighth in the NFL in rushing yards in 2021. During practice this week, several Steelers players have emphasized New England's rushing attack. Regardless of any snap count, the defense will once again need all hands on deck.
"New England's not going to feel sorry for us," Heyward said. "It's up to guys to take care of their bodies, but still be mentally sharp. These meetings mean a lot. What we're putting in. How we're executing. It's gotta be above-the-line stuff. Guys gotta be willing to stay locked in and be ready to go."
Remember, Mike Tomlin expects this defense to be dominant, and he won't accept excuses like not having Watt on the field. There's no replacing a player of his caliber. But, having the kind of depth that proved itself Sunday puts them in a better position to deal with that kind of a loss.
• While Watt is now out for at least four games, it looks like the Steelers are improving on the health front. Najee Harris (foot), Levi Wallace (ankle) and Robert Spillane (eye) were all full participants in Thursday's practice. There is still one more practice to go, but these three are trending in the right direction toward suiting up Sunday at Acrisure Stadium.
• Taking Watt's place on the 53-man roster in LB David Anenih, who was signed from the Titans' practice squad.
Anenih originally signed with Tennessee as an undrafted free agent following the 2022 NFL Draft. He was released on the final cutdown after the preseason, and was subsequently signed to their practice squad.
In three preseason games, he led the Titans with three sacks and three quarterback hits. He also registered two forced fumbles and two passes defensed.
