LATROBE, Pa. -- The Steelers' dip to 24th in the NFL in total defense and 20th in scoring defense was spurred on, in large part, because of the team's poor run defense.
The Steelers finished the 2021 season dead last in the NFL, allowing 146.1 rushing yards per game, including an NFL-worst 75 "explosive runs," which is any carry for 10 or more yards.
Certainly, not having Stephon Tuitt and Tyson Alualu for all but five quarters didn't help that. But to give up that many explosive runs, opponents were getting running backs into the secondary.
It's a big reason why safety Minkah Fitzpatrick led the team in tackles in 2021 with 124.
The Steelers obviously added to what they have up front to fix that this season, bringing in veteran defensive lineman Larry Ogunjobi and linebacker Myles Jack in free agency.
But two players who might be just as critical in the team's run defense improving aren't front-7 players. Cornerback Levi Wallace and safety Damontae Kazee were added in the offseason, as well.
The calling card of both of those defensive backs? They're sure tacklers.
"I take pride in my tackling," Wallace told me. "I don’t miss too many tackles.
"A lot of people around the league know I’m a pretty consistent tackler."
Wallace had a missed tackle rate of 10.8 percent last year -- up from 5.3 percent in 2020 -- while Kazee was at 10.3 percent.
Those might sound high in the grand scheme of things until you realize Ahkello Witherspoon was at 28.6 percent, Joe Haden 17.4 percent and Cam Sutton 16.1 percent in 2021.
Fitzpatrick (9.5 percent), strong safety Terrell Edmunds (10.1) and nickel cornerback Arthur Maulet (2.1), were much more solid in that regard in terms of the defensive backs used regularly by the Steelers in 2021. Maulet was credited with just one missed tackle in 2021.
That's why, when the Steelers have practiced open-field tackling in this training camp, Maulet and other defensive backs have made a point of being in the middle of things.
In fact, in a running backs versus linebackers drill on Saturday, Maulet took rep after rep -- nine of the 41 total reps the team had -- making sure he showed the coaching staff he's got what it takes to get a running back down in the open field.
"You can’t hide from tackling," Maulet told me. "That’s a big part of what we want to be successful in. That was a big emphasis. I had to show I can do it."
He did it again at the Steelers' practice here Tuesday morning in the team run drill, knifing into the backfield to get Benny Snell on the ground, eliciting a "Nice job Art," from a coach.
Stopping the run is about playing team defense, not just the front seven getting the job done.
"That’s a big part of our defense," Maulet told me. "You don’t want to give up any big plays, so you’ve got to wrap up guys and get them on the ground."
• For the Steelers to be a top defensive unit in the NFL this season -- and that's the goal -- the run defense has to improve.
The pass defense should be solid, in no small part because this will once again be the top pass rushing team in the league.
But this defense wants to get back to playing with a swagger. And you can't do that if you're bad against the run.
That's why the Steelers aren't talking openly about anything but stopping the run. Do that, and the rest will take care of itself.
"I don’t think we look at it as we need to talk about it, we just need to do it," defensive lineman Cam Heyward said. "We feel like when we step on the field, we should be the No. 1 defense in that game."
• Both Mason Rudolph and Kenny Pickett led the offense to touchdowns in two-minute drills in Wednesday's practice.
And both made big-time throws.
Rudolph hit George Pickens for a 35-yard bomb down the sideline and then connected with him for a touchdown that was a one-handed catch that was as good as any I've seen in my nearly 30 years of covering the NFL. Wallace had good coverage, but Pickens screened him off with his left arm and tipped the ball to himself, hauling it in with his right hand as he fell to the ground and kept his feet in bounds.
Pickett took just two plays to lead his unit on a touchdown drive, getting a 30-yard gain to Jaylen Warren in the flat that he turned into a big catch-and-run down the sideline. He then stuck a nice pass on a post to Steven Sims to finish off the practice.
It's no coincidence both those drives were keyed by perhaps the two most impressive rookies in this camp -- Pickens and Warren.
• The usage of those two quarterbacks in the two-minute drill tells you how Mike Tomlin will use his quarterbacks in Saturday's preseason opener.
Trubisky will start, but Rudolph will finish the first half and Pickett will finish the second half. That's why they were given the chance to run the two-minute offense. They'll be the ones who would be likely to do it Saturday against the Seahawks.
• Wednesday's practice was pretty sloppy. That was only natural after the team took the pads off for the first time in the past week.
But the younger players had better not let that carry over into the preseason game. That's a sure way find themselves looking for a job in a few weeks.
• The Steelers are really short on linebackers. Genard Avery, Ulysees Gilbert, Marcus Allen and Alex Highsmith all are out injured right now. There's also no way T.J. Watt gets on the field Saturday, either.
In fact, Gilbert is going to be waived with an injury designation so the Steelers can pick up another linebacker for this game.
I don't know that Myles Jack will necessarily play a lot against the Seahawks, either.
It wouldn't surprise me if Tomlin lets Devin Bush and Robert Spillane play a lot in this game and then turns things over to Buddy Johnson and Mark Robinson on the inside.
Contrary to some reports, Bush hasn't looked bad, especially in coverage. Spillane is the better player against the run.
After his second rep in Seven Shots with the starters Wednesday, the 5-foot-10 Bush while running off the field jumped up and grabbed the goalpost -- which is 10 feet off the ground.
I'd say that knee is all healed up.
• Pickett once again was admonished by Tomlin for not getting the ball out on time. This time it was during a drill in which there was a running back, tight end and wide receiver running routes against a safety, corner and linebacker.
Nobody was really open and instead of taking a shot and trying to throw someone open, Pickett took off at a job after four seconds on a scramble.
Later, he would have been sacked three different times on a play on a scramble to his right before throwing a completion down the sideline. The fans in attendance cheered, but there was no way that was going to be a completion in a game.
The internal clock in his head is still his biggest enemy right now.
• After losing Seven Shots on Tuesday and getting beat in goal-line practice on Monday, the defense showed up big time in Seven Shots on Wednesday.
Trubisky was 0-4 in Seven Shots, but he literally had nowhere to go with the ball. The coverage was excellent.
Rudolph had two touchdown passes in his reps, but Pickett's pass to Jace Sternberger was broken up by Johnson.