Replacing Stephon Tuitt was never going to be as simple as one man filling his shoes. Thus, Keith Butler knew he had to find creative ways to create pressure and confuse offenses in his absence.
That plan worked in the Steelers' 27-14 victory over the Dolphins at Heinz Field on Monday night. The Steelers' defense recorded four sacks on Ryan Fitzpatrick and forced four turnovers.
Let's dig into that:
The Steelers employed a look I hadn't seen this season that featured five defensive backs, five linebackers and one defensive lineman. That lone lineman was Cam Heyward, who never stayed in one spot.
Regularly joining him in the box were T.J. Watt and Bud Dupree as edge rushers, Devin Bush, Mark Barron and Vince Williams as patrolling linebackers and Mike Hilton in his usual aggressive slot cornerback role.
Watch how that helped them on Dupree's third down sack of Fitzpatrick. Hilton crashed from his spot as the outside rusher while Dupree stunted to the inside, Williams twisted around him, and Heyward went from being in the middle to guarding the right edge.
Once Fitzpatrick was in the pocket he's unsure of where the heat is coming from and can't find an open receiver to move the chains. He stepped up in the pocket and Dupree finished the play:
That new look kept the Dolphins guessing. And the Steelers' d-men brought up how it was something the coaches specifically added this week.
"Coaches saw something and we just wanted to keep their offense off-balance," Heyward told me after the game. "It's our job to keep executing and make it uncomfortable for the quarterback."
I asked around the locker room about the changes made in the game plan. For Dupree, it was about the specifics in how the Steelers countered the approach teams had thrown at them.
"I don't know if you guys notice how offensive lines try to block us now," Dupree said after the game. "They slide towards T.J. and then chip me with two guys, either tight ends or running backs. So we have to have stuff inside to correspond with that. We're still creating pressure even though we're getting attention on us, and it's working out for our inside guys too."
Dupree's point is valid that he and Watt are causing problems on the edges — they combined for three sacks in this game and for ten total on the season. That opened up chances on the inside for other players.
Versatility is essential as the Steelers ask different personnel to attack in various ways. Monday night, that created confusion among the Dolphins' offensive line and allowed for untouched rushers right in Fitzpatrick's face.
Watch how the Steelers lined up with only five in the box, but had two of them drop back and Hilton blitz. You can see both Heyward and Watt rush from their left and stunt to the right, while Williams twists behind them.
As he comes behind them, two linemen from the Dolphins are so fixated on Hilton that they never see Williams. The result is a desperation pass from the Dolphins' Fitzpatrick that is intercepted by the Steelers' Minkah Fitzpatrick:
Williams didn't get a sack, but he did register two quarterback hits. When I spoke to him after the game, he cited the importance of the looks the Steelers' defense gave.
"We just knew we had to develop some continuity coming out of the bye week," Williams said. "I think we were able to do that and put some exotic fronts on tape. Give people something a little extra to worry about. You know we lost Tuitt, so we wanted to come out with some exotic looks."
That's exactly what the doctor ordered. Butler and the defense weren't just calling the same plays, hoping for Javon Hargrave and Tyson Alualu to just magically turn into Tuitt. They took chances with some experimental looks and found ways to put players in position to maximize their skillsets.
But eventually you have to rely on players to win their one-on-one matchups and not rely purely on scheme. Watch this beautiful swim move from Watt on tackle Jesse Davis. He baits Davis to the outside, jabs him with his inside hand and swims over Davis' head, resulting in a strip sack and fumble recovery:
That swim move adds to the list of moves Watt continues to build in his third NFL season. After two sacks against the Dolphins he has six on the season, ranking 13th in the NFL. I wrote about how he's increased his repertoire of rush moves yesterday because I was confident we'd see those skills play out big-time against the Dolphins.
After the game, Watt broke down to me just how important his progress with different moves has been for his production.
"I think pass rushing is a chess match," Watt explained. "You have to analyze your opponent as the game goes on. You have to understand and know he's collecting information on me while I'm collecting information on him. If I beat him outside, he understands that. So then I'll try to counteract and go inside the next one or play around with some games. I have to continually try to get better and not just throw the same move all the time. Just to be able to keep him off-guard has been able to help me."
It's frighteningly impressive how on top of his own development Watt is while being just 25 years old. He's just getting started, unlike Heyward, who has regularly created pressure up the middle for years. Watch how effortless his swim move looked over guard Michael Deiter was when he sacked Fitzpatrick on a late fourth down:
Watt could be on a trajectory that's higher than Heyward's peak, and that could be the long term answer for the Steelers' not having Tuitt. But in the meantime, kudos to Butler for drawing up his own version of organized chaos to find temporary answers.
MATT SUNDAY GALLERY
Steelers vs. Dolphins, Heinz Field, Oct. 28, 2019 -- MATT SUNDAY / DKPSCarter’s Classroom needs your help! We are seeking sponsors for the 2019 NFL season that would be willing to see their brand grow through advertising with us. All interested parties should contact me at christopher@dkpittsburghsports.com.
MORE CLASSROOM
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