INDIANAPOLIS -- When the Steelers were down by eight points to the Colts in the fourth quarter Sunday at Lucas Oil Stadium, a splash play was needed to change the momentum.
That came for the defense when Ryan Shazier intercepted Jacoby Brissett on a tipped pass off the hands of Jake Doyle. It was the turning point that sparked the Steelers' 14-point second-half comeback in a 20-17 victory.
"Huge play," Jesse James would say afterward. "That really sparked us."
Entering the second half, the Steelers started to blitz more, rushing five or more players and frustrating Brissett repeatedly, including sacks by Stephon Tuitt and Vince Williams. And with the Colts facing third down deep in their territory, the Steelers' blitz on Brissett led to the Colts making their biggest mistake.
Brissett dropped back in the pocket and waited for his tight end, Doyle, to release from the backfield late and catch a short pass that might slip past the pass rush. But Doyle allowed the pass to slip through his hands, and Shazier was right there:
Dejan Kovacevic asked Shazier how he even saw the ball on that play, as it was a quick pass that changed directions quickly.
"I've got eyes in the top of my head," Shazier replied with a big grin. "Helps to have that bald head."
All bald jokes aside, there was preparation put into the play.
If you watch closely, you can see Shazier start the play running up into the line and pushing on the back of Bud Dupree. Shazier's assignment on the play was to be part of the pass rush that was attacking Brissett, but his assigned gap was clogged by Dupree.
"I have no idea what happened back there," Dupree said. "I just know he caught the ball."
Anyway, Shazier started processing where he could attack the Colts. It was his film study that led him to look for Doyle, as he explained.
"When I couldn't find a lane to blitz through, I knew that Jake Doyle is one of Brissett's main targets," Shazier said. "Based off of film study, I knew Jake Doyle got a lot of catches on check-releases and things like that. Once I saw him slipping out a little bit, I realized Brissett was going to him. I was in position to make a tackle, but when a play presents itself you just have to take advantage of the opportunity."
Entering Sunday, Doyle led the Colts with 50 receptions. 44 of those receptions came within 10 yards of the line of scrimmage. That's film prep at its finest.
Shazier's description of the play was accurate.
When asked if the play was a designed screen, Colts head coach Chuck Pagano, confirmed what Shazier said about Doyle being a late safety option for Brissett.
"It was a checkdown," Pagano said in his postgame press conference. "Just be smart right there. Backed up. Jacoby is doing the right thing. He's under duress - going to hit his checkdown, and it didn't work out."
Shazier rushed in initially looking for a hole to attack, but was stopped when he ran into Dupree. When he realized his progress was impeded, he scanned the Colts' backfield and saw Doyle standing free in the backfield.
That's exactly what Brissett has enjoyed all season with Doyle in that his tight end will stay in to block at the start of a play, then eventually release behind a blitz in order to present a short target for Brissett and have open space to run with the ball.
Only this time, Shazier was able to stop and sniff the play out when he realized his blitz would never get to Brissett in time, and he locked onto Doyle based off the knowledge he attained through his study of the Colts. He put himself in position to make the tackle but ended up making a great play on the ball after Doyle dropped the pass.
But finishing the play was something Shazier knew he had to polish, as well. The team saw him drop two red zone interceptions two weeks ago in Detroit, one of which came on a play where he was in a full sprint and most likely headed for a touchdown had he held onto the ball. That wasn't lost upon his teammates during the bye, especially fellow inside linebacker Vince Williams.
"We were making fun of him," Williams said. "The last time he had a chance to make a pick, it hit him in the face and he dropped it."
But missing those interceptions didn't alter Shazier's preparation.
"I work on my hands every week," he said when asked about catching the ball. "I hit the Jugs after every Wednesday and Thursday practice. Sometimes you catch them, sometimes you don't."
Well, on Sunday, Shazier caught the ball for his third interception, tied with the Rams' Mark Barron for most by a linebacker in the NFL. It flipped the field for the Steelers, putting the offense at the Indianapolis 10 and leading to the tying touchdown
Earlier this week, Dale Lolley asked Mike Tomlin about how those kinds of moments on defense might be the key to the Steelers' run to the playoffs.
"Being a group that is opportunistic and being capable of cashing in on an opportunity when presented needs to be what defines us over the course of the second half of the year," Tomlin said. “We’ve had splash plays on defense missed. I think about Ryan Shazier on the last defensive snap the last game we played in Detroit. Just great teams seem like they have a flair for the dramatic. They make those plays when given an opportunity.”
Obviously, that missed turnover was a key focus for Tomlin coming into this week, and he made sure to mention how Shazier's interception followed through on his splash play philosophy after this game.
"He's a splash playmaker," Tomlin said of Shazier. "We need him and others to make those type of plays."
MATT SUNDAY GALLERY