Carter's Classroom grades: Outside linebackers

What had been the premier position of the Steelers' defense for a decade has been in a bit of a rut for the past six years or so. The Steelers of the 2000s were loaded with talent at outside linebacker, from role players like Clark Haggans to their superstars like Jason Gildon, Joey Porter, Lamarr Woodley and, of course, James Harrison.

Today, the Steelers still rely on Harrison, even though he's pushing 40 years old, along with Bud Dupree, a second-year player. The slip at the position started when the superstar pass rusher who was supposed to lead this generation, Woodley, got caught in an unfortunate run of injuries that ended his career.

The Steelers made a huge investment in Woodley, both financially and in their team makeup. Once Woodley was too ineffective, it put the Steelers in a bind.

Combine that with Jarvis Jones, a bust of a first-round pick, and you have your answers as to how they got here. Let's get into the film room to study the talent they do have on the roster:



JAMES HARRISON

An ageless wonder, Harrison has found a way to make himself a staple of a defense at 38 years old. Everyone knew how much he contributed in the late 2000s with his double-digit sack numbers and constant presence in the backfield, but now he still finds ways to be relevant without the same explosion he had 10 years ago.

Strengths: Harrison not only knows his role in the Steelers' defense down to the very steps he has to take, but he's extremely aggressive in executing his role. You need a player with that kind of fire to be your edge setter and pass rusher in this Steelers' defense. That allows the rest of the team to work around that one player who is crushing an edge or bringing heat on a quarterback.

If you read our review of the defensive backs, you might remember watching Sean Davis collapse in on a key third-and-one situation for a crucial stop.

That stop was made a lot easier because Harrison completely collapsed his edge of the offensive line. Look toward the edge of the offensive line closer to the bottom of your screen, you'll see Harrison push his man down the line:



That push prevents Ezekiel Elliott from taking any of the interior gaps and forces him right into Davis. Harrison knew his responsibility and closed down on it hard because he knew how important it was to not let Elliott have his choice of which gaps to attack.

Harrison also knows his role in how to make plays happen from simply his savvy of the game. Take his sack/fumble in the playoffs. Harrison initially lined up just off the offensive tackle, then backed off to hover over the slot receiver to give the impression he was in coverage.

What was remarkable was that he did that all on his own, as Ryan Shazier was trying to tell him to bump back inside because he knew that Harrison's part in the scheme was not to be that far out:



Harrison's deception works in that both the tackle and guard focus on L.T. Walton and that gives him a free path to Matt Moore. That's not something that the average NFL linebacker plans out and executes. Harrison can't always bruise past every opponent he faces, but much like Mean Joe Greene did in the late 70s, he finds smarter ways to get the job done.

That's not to say Harrison still can't overpower even the best of offensive linemen. Remember the game-saving holding call he drew against the Chiefs in the playoffs? That was against a former first overall pick, Eric Fisher, who is in the prime of his career:



The rip move is one of the most classic of pass-rush moves, but Harrison has used it so effectively over the years that he could have his own trademark of a rip move. His first step is still quick enough to make him effective against NFL offensive tackles, but when he combines it with the proper technique, it makes him even more dangerous.

Weaknesses: Harrison's age is his only source of a weakness. His stamina is not with that of his younger teammates. We saw this kick into effect when the Patriots went into a no-huddle offense to keep him tired and on the field during the AFC Championship Game.

Harrison is most useful when he can rush the passer or crush the edge every 30 seconds or so, but when that recovery time is knocked down to 10 or 15 seconds, he's going to have a harder time staying on the field.

Also because of that, Harrison's skills in coverage are not nearly what they were years ago, and even then they were not all that great.

Value: So long as Harrison wants to play, he should be on this team. The Steelers need guys who can get after the quarterback and set the edge against the run. He does both of those jobs at an above-average level. Unless the Steelers bring in a free-agent star at outside linebacker or an instant impact rookie at the position, look for Harrison to at least be in the position to do similar things next season.

BUD DUPREE

Dupree's second year showed the traits which excited fans last year were not a fluke. Despite missing the first half of the season, the 24 year old was an impact player and had no problem reintegrating into the defense.

Strengths: Dupree's athleticism and explosiveness make him a solid weapon on the edge. That allows him to both run players down in the backfield, and it makes him more difficult to block.

One example of that was the play he made on Alex Smith during the playoffs that led to a Shazier interception. Dupree put on a stutter step at the line of scrimmage and managed to use the hesitation of the opposing tackle, which was extremely brief, to get him around the edge:



This was something which Jones could never bring to the table, as his speed and explosiveness were very limited. Dupree can afford to avoid engaging with linemen if he's able to run around them, which helps in the pass rush.

But that speed also means the Steelers can line him up in different parts of the box and do more with him. A perfect example was when he lined up similarly to an inside linebacker right next to Lawrence Timmons and read an option play in the backfield perfectly against the Bills:



This was a great job at not only getting to Tyron Taylor on the run, but also reading on the fake and playing it just how a player is coached to counter the option. Dupree reads which direction the ball is going and immediately targets the ball carrier. His job is to force Taylor to have to pitch the ball for help, banking on the outside cornerback to be in the area of the pitch man.

Dupree gets out to the edge so fast that he's in position by the time Taylor figures out what he wants to do with the ball and puts him away with ease.

But Dupree isn't all about speed, he is also every bit the hustle player that can win battles for you at the line. Watch his sack of Taylor later in that Bills game:



Dupree engages the tackle and works his way to the inside, where he forces Taylor from his launch spot. Once Taylor breaks for the sideline, Dupree sheds his man and catches Taylor quickly.

Dupree's athleticism makes him a player whom the Steelers are going to be excited to see develop. He also seems to have a good understanding of his role in the scheme, often doing a good job against the edge when facing the run and not over-pursuing or giving up his outside shoulder.

Weaknesses: Dupree still does not possess many pass-rush moves that can get him into the backfield. That has to change if he is going to be the future at outside linebacker. You can even see on the sack of Taylor, while he exhibits good hustle, his usual blitz is just to run into his gap and try to overpower you or run around you.

He needs to work with Harrison and develop his own, more consistent, rip move, swim move or personal pass rush techniques.

Value: Entering the third year of his rookie contract makes Dupree's value to the team very high at this point. He's part of the group of seven starters on defense who were 25 and under this season, and he looks to be improving as he continues to gain experience.

JARVIS JONES

If it was not official before this season, it is now authorized to call Jones a complete bust at outside linebacker.

Strengths: The best thing Jones brought to the team was his gradual learning of the scheme that made him a knowledgeable defender who could play within the design Keith Butler was putting together. Jones often seemed the least confused of the backup linebackers when on the field, showing effort to at least attack the right gap at a fairly high percentage of what I watched.

Weaknesses: However, it doesn't matter if you know what to do if you still aren't good at your job. Jones was occasionally explosive off his first step, but never has shown to be a dominating kind of player who can routinely abuse offensive tackles and be a force in the backfield.

Take a look at when he gives up the edge to Jay Ajayi:



Notice how Jones (95) comes in aggressively and gives up his outside (right) shoulder to the offensive lineman. That allows him to get sealed to the inside and allows Ajayi to get a one-on-one with Artie Burns.

Jones isn't particularly mean at the position either. He seems to be a guy who goes for the right techniques and just wants to do his job, rather than a player like Harrison who wants to make a point of physically beating his opponent each time the ball is snapped.

Value: Jones enters free agency this offseason, and I think that the Steelers will be comfortable letting him go. With their recent signing of Anthony Chickillo to an extension, the organization has to ask itself whether it can afford to keep around a former first-round pick for depth or if they should just count on the draft and move forward.

To me, the answer is to find another player. Jones showed flashes of potential at different points in his career, improving against the run and a few big hits here and there, but nothing substantial enough to make me want to keep him around.

If he wants to come back for cheap and play as a backup, that would be fine. But that is the only condition in which he should stay with this team.

ANTHONY CHICKILLO

Chickillo's one-year deal gives him more time to find a way to prove himself on the field. What has kept him on the team might have been his athleticism and youth, but he's going to need more than that if he wants a better contract after this season.

Strengths: Chickillo is good in space, meaning if he goes unblocked or is in more of a chase-down kind of situation, he can be of use. He's a solid tackling linebacker who can be a body on defense who isn't too slow to keep up with opponents in space.

Chickillo also shows the potential, at times, to have adequate pass-rush moves that allow him to win battles on the edge. It's not nearly consistent enough to be a dependable weapon, but something the Steelers could have a use for in the back of their depth chart.

Weaknesses: The problem with Chickillo is that he's proven too unreliable to in too many facets. For one, Chickillo looks like a player who is easily defeated when a lineman gets two hands on him.

One thing I noticed in his play was that often his foot drive would stop once he was engaged with a defender and didn't win immediately. Watch how he (56) plays the edge here on the left side of the line of scrimmage:



While he ends up opening a hole for Shazier to chase down Andy Dalton, Chickillo fails to fight through this block or even force his opponent to put a lot of effort into stopping him. He just engages and gets into a stationary hand battle, which almost always works in the offense's favor.

This was no one-time thing either, as you can see on this third-and-short conversion by Elliott and the Cowboys. Watch the right edge as Chickillo engages Doug Free (68):



Chickillo's job is to maintain the edge, which he does in that he made sure that Elliott had to go inside. However take a look at those feet again and notice what they're doing once he engages Free.

They basically aren't moving, which means no push or attack on his end, and that ends up being about a space of four yards which Timmons has to cover on one of the NFL's faster starting running backs.

Chickillo should be able to find a way to at least engage Free in order to back him up as Free didn't fire off the ball at all and sort of waited for Chickillo to engage him so that he could seal him to the outside.

Chickillo also isn't all that dependable in gap assignments either. Remember that nail in the coffin of a touchdown from Ajayi  in the regular season? Watch was Chickillo bounces to the inside on this play, essentially occupying the same gap as Stephon Tuitt and leaving a much bigger hole for Timmons and the rest of the defense to cover:



While this was the result of an adjustment at the line, Chickillo's gap could not have been that far inside in order to leave Timmons with so much space and an extra man to cover.

Value: Chickillo's one-year deal gives him more time to improve, but probably puts him on the roster more as a special teams player who can provide relief to tired outside linebackers. Our own Mark Kaboly reported on the deal to net him $615,000, which will be the total cap space he occupies.

The move keeps depth at outside linebacker with someone who knows the system better than a below-average, free-agent acquisition, as the Steelers try to fill holes without sacrificing too much cap space as they try to sign their superstars.

ARTHUR MOATS

Arthur Moats is the second oldest outside linebacker on the roster, behind Harrison, and only at the age of 28.

Strengths: Moats is mostly a solid role player, not doing any particular part of his job to an outstanding degree, but doing enough of the little things all-around to make him usable as a backup.

Since I've watched Moats, I've seen him display a solid football IQ, rarely putting himself out of position to make plays or costing his team because he didn't perform his assignment due to confusion. Watch how Moats (55) works the edge in this run play against the Dolphins:



Notice how when he comes off the ball he immediately engages with Ja'Wuan James (70) at the point of attack. Moats gets his hands to the inside, not allowing himself to be blown out of position by James, but keeps his head up the entire time, watching the play, and manages to maintain the edge just enough to scare Ajayi back to the inside, where help is available.

Moats makes these kind of unsung plays more often than not when given the opportunity. It's why he's remained on the roster and the Steelers feel comfortable keeping him in the linebacker rotation despite his lack of pass rush moves.

Weaknesses: That lack of moves being part of Moats' downside fits the bill of what you expect out of a veteran backup outside linebacker. Moats isn't the guy who is going to blow up an offensive tackle for a huge sack on third down once a week or make a great read for an interception.

He doesn't have that kind of athleticism to impose his will on opponents, but that's probably the most major criticism I feel comfortable making of him.

Value: Moats has a good value to the team as he only takes up around $2.8 million in cap space. However he is in the final year of his contract and a cut from the team would release around $2.2 million of that back to the Steelers.

Ultimately Moats is still a solid depth veteran the Steelers will be happy to keep around for that price and provide support to Dupree, Harrison and possibly a rookie the Steelers add to the position with one of their higher picks.

OVERVIEW

While there is a bit of an upside to the position with the rise of Dupree, this position is arguably the most dire for the Steelers to address in either free agency or the upcoming draft. The team cannot expect to rely on the skills of Harrison for much longer. Even with their all-time leading sack man on the roster, the team needs a young explosive talent off the edge to team up with Dupree.

The Steelers appear to be happy with Moats and Chickillo as their depth men, which might be added to with whatever player they select to boost this crew in the offseason. But rest assured, it's one of their top priorities.