One week ago, the Steelers' defense went into a game against the Jaguars, a team that was all but one-dimensional on offense, and tied a franchise record for points allowed in a playoff game that had stood since 1985.
The difference was that the team that beat the Steelers, 45-42, last Sunday looked nothing offensively like those 1985 Dolphins, quarterbacked by Hall of Famer Dan Marino, who put up 45 against them in that year's AFC Championship.
What do the Steelers need to do with their defense to make this a championship unit?
We took a look at the team's offense a couple of days ago. Today, we'll take a look at the defense, which is much more troubling.
DEFENSIVE LINE
The strength of the defense for much of the season, this group let the team down in a big way against the Jaguars. Cam Heyward was limited to just one tackle. Stephon Tuitt had three. Javon Hargrave, Tyson Alualu and L.T. Walton also had one each.
So what was the issue? Tuitt (elbow) and Hargrave (back) both showed up on the injury report during the week leading up to the loss to the Jaguars. And it seems both injuries were a bigger deal than anyone imagined. Tuitt played with a brace on his hyperextended arm, while Hargrave played fewer snaps than Walton, which never would have happened if he were healthy.
Some have suggested the Steelers move to a 4-3 defense, but that has been suggested nearly every year for the past 20. And there would be more to it than just simply adding another defensive lineman or two to this group. Besides, they already play with a four-man defensive front 70 percent of the time in their nickel and dime defenses, making those sub packages more their base defense than the actual 3-4.
Heyward is coming off his best season. He was named first-team All-Pro and to the Pro Bowl after recording 12 sacks and is the unquestioned leader of the defense. At 28, he's in the midst of the prime of his career.
Tuitt, still just 24, should be heading into the prime of his career -- if he can stay healthy. Injuries have sidelined him for eight games over the past three seasons, perhaps keeping him from becoming the force he has shown the potential to be.
In his second season. Hargrave took some positive steps forward. But even though he was worked into the nickel and dime later in the season when Ryan Shazier was lost, Hargrave still played fewer than 50 percent of the snaps. He's shown he can rush the passer, but he's not necessarily the run plugger the Steelers have had at the nose in the past.
That's fine, however, if the linebackers do their job behind him.
Alualu was a solid No. 4 lineman in the rotation, better than anyone the Steelers have had in that spot in years. Of course, that is what you would expect from a guy who was the 10th overall pick in the 2010 NFL Draft.
Walton has continued to progress as the fifth lineman but will always be in danger of not making the roster if a good young player is added to the mix, which the Steelers are sure to add in the draft.
Daniel McCullers has never become what the Steelers had hoped when they took a chance on him in the sixth round of the 2014 draft. His body of work is nowhere near the size of his actual body (6-7, 352), and so the Steelers will likely let him walk away as a free agent to become somebody else's enigma.
LINEBACKERS
For as many high draft picks as the Steelers have invested recently on the linebacker position -- four first-round picks in the past five years -- they still haven't found the right mix here.
Part of that has been because of ineffectiveness -- Jarvis Jones -- and the other has been injury -- Shazier. The injury to Shazier was the critical point of this season.
During training camp, it was obvious the Steelers had no replacement for the speedy inside linebacker with Lawrence Timmons having left in free agency. Timmons no longer has the speed to cover ground like Shazier, but he most certainly would have been a better option to start next to him throughout the season, with Vince Williams holding down his usual backup spot.
That's not to say Williams didn't have a solid season. He finished with 88 tackles, eight sacks and an interception. But once Shazier was lost, the big plays weren't as plentiful. Williams is more of a supporting actor than he is a star or co-star.
Acquiring a replacement for Shazier will be the key to this offseason. That could come through the draft or free agency. Look for the Steelers to do both -- take a young linebacker of the future in the draft while also acquiring a veteran to at least be a bridge or backup at the position.
The Steelers were left thin at inside linebacker in 2017, as shown by the desperation move to sign Sean Spence when Shazier was injured. They won't get caught short-handed for a second year in a row.
Tyler Matakevich was the backup at both inside linebacker spots coming out of training camp, which was something of a surprise. He doesn't run well, which made him a curious backup to Shazier, and though he's a smart player, headiness will only take you so far. L.J. Fort was the closest thing the Steelers had on their roster athletically to Shazier, though even that was a stretch. He played in the dime on obvious passing downs once Shazier was lost, but his inability to diagnose plays and meet the physical standards inside kept him off the field as an every-down player.
Spence is an unrestricted free agent and the Steelers could be interested in bringing him back for depth.
The situation at outside linebacker is interesting, as well.
While Bud Dupree made it through a full season for the first time in his career, his 40 tackles, six sacks and one pass defensed were a disappointment. He continues to show a lack of feel for the game and, as one source told me, he's too big to be getting blocked to the ground as easily as he (in the blue circle) seems to be, at times such as this:
The Steelers must make a decision this offseason whether they want to pick up the fifth-year option on Dupree's rookie contract, though it's hard to see the team choosing to pick up an option that would pay Dupree more than $8 million guaranteed in 2019 based on his current production.
Making things dicey is that, after the release of James Harrison in December, both backup linebackers are heading into some form of free agency this offseason. Arthur Moats will be unrestricted, and it's doubtful the Steelers bring him back. Anthony Chickillo will be restricted, and the Steelers are going to have to place a tender offer on him and hope to re-sign him as their top backup at both outside spots.
Rookie T.J. Watt had 52 tackles, seven sacks, one interception and eight pass defenses in his first season and looks to be a keeper. But he seemingly wore down as the season went on. He should be better in his second year as he gains a better understanding of the defense.
One player to keep an eye on in the offseason is Farrington Huguenin. The Kentucky product has good size (6-4, 268) and could make a move to win a roster spot.
DEFENSIVE BACKS
As good as it seemed at times, as bad as it seemed at times, this was actually a decent season for the secondary.
Wait, don't spit out whatever it is you're drinking. Hear me out.
The emergence of nickel corner Mike Hilton, the acquisition of Joe Haden just before the start of the season and the solid play out of Cameron Sutton in the small doses we saw gives some hope for the future. Everyone wanted to see more man-to-man defense on the back end this season, but Rome wasn't built in a day. The Steelers did play a lot more man as the season wore on and should continue that into 2018.
The key will be acquiring a free safety capable of creating more turnovers. Mike Mitchell was a good fit for what the Steelers wanted to do in their zone schemes and, despite what some might think, was a solid tackler overall. But an early-season ankle injury robbed him of his range, and he had no interceptions and just two passes defensed in 13 games. He'll turn 31 in June and have a cap hit of $8.1 million in 2018. It's hard to see the Steelers bringing him back at that cap hit given his production.
One other solution would be moving Sutton, who played some safety at the University of Tennessee, to free safety. He's smart enough to make the move, and that would give the Steelers the chance to put their best five defensive backs on the field at the same time.
Like the inside linebacker position, a rookie could be brought in at the position with Robert Golden or a mid-level free agent holding down the spot until the rookie is ready to take over. Either way, the Steelers need to acquire at least one and possibly two new guys on the backside.
Sean Davis had a productive second season at strong safety, leading the team in tackles while recording three interceptions. a sack and eight pass defenses. Sure, he got beaten up when matching up against Rob Gronkowski, but what defensive back doesn't when matched one-on-one against Gronk?
Davis will continue to get better and has the look of a long-term answer at the safety position.
Artie Burns, the top pick in the 2016 draft, continues to progress, though maybe not as fast as some would hope. He's at his best when playing press man coverage, perhaps because of his sometimes troubling lack of ball awareness. There are times when he just doesn't see or can't find the ball in the air.
Coty Sensabaugh had his moments as an injury replacement for Haden but also gave up some big plays -- as did everyone on the back end. But he counts just $1.6 million against the cap next season, and the team would save just $1.4 million by releasing him, so unless the Steelers get really tight against the cap, he'll likely be back as a backup.
The Steelers also carried Brian Allen on their roster all season, and the 6-3, 215-pound fifth-round draft pick could be an interesting chess piece next season after getting this year on scholarship.
The Steelers traded a sixth-round draft pick to Tampa Bay for J.J. Wilcox before the season began and, after playing a lot early, he fell out of favor with the coaching staff. Wilcox is better suited to play close to the line of scrimmage than in center field and, with a cap hit of $3.125 million, he's in danger of being released. He also had four penalties, including three on special teams, which was huge considering he failed to record a tackle on special teams.
William Gay is expected to retire or be released after 11 NFL seasons. The Steelers wanted desperately to replace him as their nickel corner this season and did that with the emergence of Hilton. But Gay still played in the dime and was exposed, at times, including against Jacksonville, when he didn't have the speed to get out to the flat to cover T.J. Yeldon on what became a 40-yard catch-and-run.
Gay's release or retirement would produce $1.75 million in cap savings.
OVERALL
The Steelers ranked 21st in total defense in 2015, Keith Butler's first season as defensive coordinator. That rose to 12th in 2016 and fifth overall in 2017. The Steelers also set a team record with 56 sacks this season.
But it's still not a finished product by any stretch of the imagination.
This team never adequately replaced Shazier at inside linebacker. And the loss of its best playmaker is something the coaching staff is going to have to account for this offseason. They have to assume Shazier never plays football again, which is tough to face, but is reality.
Mike Tomlin has already told his defensive staff they will all be back, which is surprising given the team's playoff meltdown on that side of the ball. At the very least, it wouldn't have been surprising if outside linebackers coach Joey Porter had been replaced.
But Tomlin has taken a larger hand in coaching the defense since Dick LeBeau was forced out after the 2014 season. I documented it in training camp in 2015 when Tomlin was working with the defensive backs on how to successfully play more Cover-2 concepts. So the coaches on that side of the ball are doing what he is asking of them.
There have been improvements, to be sure, but not quite enough to push the Steelers over the top. If that continues, the buck will eventually have to stop with Tomlin. But we're certainly not at that point yet, no matter how much some fans or one or two limited investors clamor about a head coach coming off a 13-3 season.