The Steelers' defense is coming off its worst performance of the season as the Colts scored 17 unanswered points in the first half and tallied 239 total yards while converting 57% of its third-down attempts in the first 30 minutes of Sunday's contest. While it was an uncharacteristic start for one of the best defenses in the league, the Steelers are looking to bounce back as they head into a primetime matchup against the Cowboys.
When it came down to it, the game was full of mistakes that are somewhat foreign to this Steelers defense. Dropped interceptions, missed assignments that led to touchdowns, splash plays that allowed the Colts to move the chains and ultimately a slow start that put the Steelers in a hole that was tough to get out of.
"We just didn't get off to the start that we wanted, that's what I was more surprised about," Teryl Austin said. "I've been very happy with our guys and how we've been playing, things we've been doing and how we've been starting games. So it was a little bit out of the norm for us."
Through the first four weeks of the season, the Steelers have been one of the top defenses in the league. They've limited opponents to 3.7 yards per rush attempt, the second-best mark in the league, and have given up 347 yards on 93 attempts while only allowing one run of 20 yards or more.
On top of that, the Steelers have limited opposing quarterbacks to the seventh-lowest completion percentage (62.2) and quarterback rating (80.5) in the league, but have given up 7.1 yards per attempt (17th) and 789 total passing yards (11th).
During Sunday's game, the Colts averaged 4.20 yards per rush and threw for 225 yards while completing 63% of their passes. But, in the first quarter, they completed 75% of their passes for 11.13 yards per pass and also ran for 6.36 yards per carry. They scored on their first two drives of the game while picking up big chunks of yardage.
The Colts' first two plays of the game were gains of 32 and 14 yards before Jonathan Taylor rushed into the end zone from two yards out six plays later. On their second drive, Michael Pittman caught a 28-yard pass on the first play before the Colts again proceeded to earn gains of 11, 14, 10 and 13 yards. That quick start allowed the Colts to work with a lead throughout the entirety of the game.
I asked Donte Jackson about their slow start and he said while there are things they need to improve, the Colts executed extremely well early in the game. He also added that a lot of the mistakes the Steelers made are things that can be fixed.
"I think a lot of the slow start was on us from a communication standpoint, there wasn't nothing too egregious, but it really came down to those guys just executing really, really well," Jackson said. "A lot of the plays that they hit, we were inches away from hitting the ball on or inches away from getting an interception, inches from getting a sack. But those guys really executed well so I think just a mixture of both of those things came into play Sunday."
Austin said fixing those mistakes just comes down to making small tweaks in the meeting room or on the practice field so that they don't happen again in the future.
"Making sure our communication is right, making sure we're talking and saying the right things, recognizing the right formations, all those different things," Austin said. "That's really what you do. You just go in and just go work at it. I mean, there's no secret to it."
And there isn't, the Steelers have shown that.
Leading into Sunday's contest, the Steelers had only allowed two touchdowns and four field goals while also never allowing more than 15 first downs -- the Colts earned 22. The Steelers also had never given up more than 90 rushing yards and had limited their last two opponents to less than 65 -- the Colts rushed for 133 yards and one touchdown. So the evidence of this being an outlier game through the first four weeks of the season is there.
"It was kind of just one of those days," Austin said. "We had opportunities to make some plays and stop some of their splash and we did not and that’s what happens when you let teams get off to a good start, their confidence goes and then you’re fighting an uphill battle, especially on the road."
So, while they recognize there is room for improvement, Jackson said the Steelers just have to continue what they've been doing.
"There wasn't too much where we have to be like this, this, this, this, it's just more of just getting back to what we do, focusing more on our execution, focusing more on our communication, things that we've been doing, we just want to do better," Jackson said. "All fixable things."
The Colts also did whatever they could to shut down T.J. Watt and, statistically, they did. For the first time since the Steelers' win over the Rams last year in Los Angeles, Watt was held without a solo tackle. He did register two combined tackles, but nothing else. That's only happened nine times in his career and four of those came during his rookie season in 2017.
However, Cam Heyward said Thursday that when Watt is getting that much attention, it should open the door for the rest of the defensive line to take advantage of one-on-ones, which they did for the most part. Heyward tallied a sack and three quarterback hits, while Larry Ogunjobi and Beanie Bishop combined for another sack. Five other players also recorded quarterback hits.
"If they are double and triple teaming him, that gives one-on-ones to us, so that's up for us to hold up our end of the deal and make sure we capitalize on that," Heyward said. "We can sit here and talk about the stats, but he was still affecting the game. He was still making guys hold him, which they didn't call. So if that happens then we have to step up. But, not every game is going to be like that."
And after the way the Steelers have started this season on the defensive side, it probably won't be. There's no reason to panic and the Steelers know that.
