Coty Sensabaugh is fine. His ankle, injured late in Sunday's 33-18 win over the Browns, is going to be OK moving forward.
"I’m going to be all right," Sensabaugh told me Monday as he sat at his locker.
Mr. Reliable will likely be on the field when the Steelers travel to Baltimore Sunday for a rematch against a Ravens team that defeated them 26-14 a month ago.
Sensabaugh was injured on a tackle by Breshad Perriman while returning an interception that was negated when Cleveland quarterback Baker Mayfield was ruled down by contact for a sack by Stephon Tuitt. It took what would have been Sensabaugh's fourth career interception off the board.
It ended what had been, to that point, a very good day for Sensabaugh, who had gotten all of the snaps at cornerback opposite Joe Haden.
That happened because, according to an ESPN report, Artie Burns had been benched for the game after missing a walkthrough last week. The result was a defensive effort that saw the Steelers limit the Browns to just 237 yards, including 163 through the air.
Sensabaugh had been splitting time with Burns opposite Haden the past four games. But with Sensabaugh on the field, the Steelers turned in their best defensive effort of the season.
"I think it was great coaching, great playing and guys trusting in one another and trying to make a play when the opportunity comes," Sensabaugh told me.
But following that game, several of his teammates in the secondary were quick to point out there weren't any blown coverages or assignments.
Considering the Steelers (4-2-1) played a number of defensive packages and rotated a number of defensive players into the game, that was significant. The coaching staff might be reluctant to go away from something that worked so well, especially in an important game against the Ravens (4-4).
The Steelers used not only their base 3-4 package, but their nickel, dime and dollar packages, as well. They even used a heavy package against some of Cleveland's offensive fronts that included an extra safety in Jordan Dangerfield and defensive tackle in Daniel McCullers.
"It was us all working together. The coaches put us in great positions and we executed," safety Morgan Burnett said.
As a result, the Steelers defense has risen from 30th in the league just four weeks ago after a loss to the Ravens to 15th this week in both yardage and points allowed.
Now, the question is whether the Steelers go back to Burns, a 2016 first-round pick, or stick with Sensabaugh in the starting lineup. Even after the ankle injury, it was second-year cornerback Cam Sutton, not Burns, who went into the game.
Burns declined the opportunity to speak to reporters Monday and had seen his defensive snap counts reduced in each of the previous three games from 51 to 41 to 29 before being held out of Sunday's game completely.
Now in his third season in the Steelers defense, Burns continues to struggle with blown assignments. Sensabaugh, who joined the Steelers as a free agent before the 2017 season, hasn't seemed to have the same issues.
The seven-year veteran and former fourth-round draft pick of the Titans isn't going to make mental mistakes. That at least puts him in position to make plays. If a catch is made against him, it's because he either made a physical error or was simply beaten.
"I think it’s execution and communication," Haden said. "Once we have our call and we get a body on a body, it’s tough for them to make their plays. It’s still going to happen, but we can’t have people running free. We’re limiting those. When they make a play, it’s because of something they did, not because we helped them out."
Knowing the defense is important. Sensabaugh filled in for an injured Haden last season, starting four games when Haden was out with a fractured bone in his leg.
But even Sensabaugh doesn't know if he'll be sticking in the starting lineup or if Burns will be given a chance to work his way back into the equation. He's just going to keep his head down and keep working.
"I wouldn’t say it’s difficult, it just takes time," Sensabaugh said of learning the defensive scheme. "I think we’re just a group that is getting used to playing with each other and growing as a team, and it’s starting to show."