Without Ja’Marr Chase in the Bengals' lineup, Tee Higgins -- a No. 1 wide receiver for most teams in the league -- torched the Steelers to the tune of nine catches for 148 crucial yards. Eight of Higgins’ receptions produced a first down, and five could be classified as explosive.
Back in Week 1, it was Chase who went off, catching 10 passes for 129 yards and a touchdown. And in most games in between, the Steelers have allowed far too much production to the opponent’s best receiver.
Here's how that has gone:
• Week 2 vs. Patriots: Jakobi Meyers, the Patriots' best receiver, caught nine for 95. But Nelson Agholor also caught six passes for 110 yards and a touchdown.
• Week 3 vs. Browns: Amari Cooper caught seven for 101 and a touchdown.
• Week 4 vs. Jets: The Steelers did a great job of limiting Garrett Wilson, New York’s best wide out, but Corey Davis did catch five balls for 74 yards and a touchdown. And that was just Wilson’s fourth NFL game.
• Week 5 vs. Bills: Stefon Diggs, clearly their best wideout, had eight catches for 102 yards and a touchdown. But, as you probably recall, Gabriel Davis produced 171 yards and two very long touchdowns on his three receptions.
• Week 6 vs. Buccaneers: Mike Evans and Chris Godwin combined for just 10 catches for 137 yards. You’ll take that. The Steelers won this game.
• Week 7 vs. Dolphins: Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle combined for just 11 catches for 160 yards. You’ll certainly take that considering what these two have done all year. The Steelers would have won this game if their defense could've caught maybe even one of the five should-have-been interceptions thrown to them.
• Week 8 vs. Eagles: AJ Brown lit up the Steelers to the tune of six catches for 156 yards and three touchdowns.
• Week 10 vs. Saints: Chris Olave, a rookie who already qualifies as a No. 1 receiver in this league, was held to only three catches for 40 yards. This was the Steelers' third and most recent victory.
Seeing a trend here?
The Steelers did a tremendous job against Tampa Bay, Miami and New Orleans' most dangerous pass-catchers and probably should have won all three of those games. But on the other hand ... well, you get the idea. Their ability to limit the top 25 or so wide receivers in this league has been a huge problem.
The days of 'Blitzburgh' are gone.
Dick LeBeau’s defense had three very stout defensive linemen that demolished opposing run games. Their edge defenders were light by defensive end standards, but those guys also dropped into coverage much more than the edge guys do now, and they could also rush the passer, as well. Much of LeBeau’s pressure came from blitz and he played a lot of zone coverage behind it. Thus, the 'zone blitz.'
The Steelers now are constructed much differently to fit the modern-day NFL. They are built front to back, with huge investments in T.J. Watt and Cam Heyward. With Minkah Fitzpatrick roaming in the deep middle of the field, he can make up for some issues in coverage. When healthy and right, the Steelers don’t have to blitz a lot to affect quarterbacks. And they want to play more man coverage on the back end.
The tape shows that Fitzpatrick is the player that every opposing team fears and avoids at all costs:
This is Fitzpatrick’s first game with the Steelers, Sept. 22, 2019, in Santa Clara, Calif. This is a deflection, something that often results in a negative offensive play when near Fitzpatrick. His burst on the ball here is just superb. And then, as usual, Fitzpatrick makes something happen once he gets the football. Fitzpatrick has 14 interceptions since joining the Steelers. It's very warranted that the opponents do not want to throw his way.
The Steelers also play 'sides' with their cornerbacks. One guy aligns basically every snap on the right on the outside and the same is true on the left. They don’t travel. This isn’t uncommon in today’s NFL, and one thing people often don’t think about when Deion Sanders or Darrelle Revis traveled with a number one receiver all over the formation is that all other ten defensive players must adjust accordingly, which can put them in compromising or confusing situations.
But what if the Steelers' defense didn’t have a bunch of OK or solid guys at cornerback and had one stud, one great player amongst the current cornerback group?
Let’s examine the group for a minute.
Levi Wallace and Ahkello Witherspoon were signed to two-year deals, but the Steelers would feel zero consequences if they moved away from either player after this season. If they were to choose between the two, you’d think that Wallace has the upper hand on staying.
James Pierre will be a restricted free agent. There is no reason not to bring Pierre back on what will be a very friendly deal. But ideally, Pierre is the fourth cornerback, as well as a valuable special teams player.
Cam Sutton’s contract expires after this season. He should be a priority to bring back. Sutton has been the Steelers' best cornerback this year. But, in a perfect world, he is the top slot option and isn’t a starter on the outside when they employ just two corners. That would bump Arthur Maulet out of the equation, which is a good thing. Sutton is very capable inside or out and has a great football IQ.
Then, there's the case of William Jackson. Bringing him back next year wouldn’t be devastating to the Steelers' salary cap. He is a man-coverage cornerback and could be a real find. But obviously, it is really difficult to comment on him without actually seeing Jackson yet in a Steelers uniform. Hopefully that happens before the end of the season, as I believe Jackson could be a valid starter on the outside in this scheme.
But none of these guys are studs. Studs come early in the draft at this position. And very early in the draft, which is much of the reason that the Steelers' defense isn’t predicated on great man coverage cornerbacks.
The Steelers rarely can draft such a player because they draft too far down in the first round. Corners are coveted by all and go very quick. There just aren’t that many humans on the planet who are six feet tall, around 200 pounds, run a 4.4 or better 40-yard dash with superb change or direction skills, are technique-sound in man to man, and can react to the great route runners in the league today. Those guys are extremely rare, as you can imagine. And they are worth their weight in gold.
Not only do those guys go high in the draft, but they also have a very good success rate. This past draft, Derek Stingley went third overall, and Sauce Gardner went fourth. Stingley is grossly miscast in a Cover 2 scheme in Houston, but Gardner is the obvious frontrunner right now for Defensive Rookie of the Year. Jaycee Horn, the eighth overall pick in 2021, has been a success for the Panthers and Patrick Surtain, who went with the next selection, would be the cornerback I would pick if building a team right now for the rest of their career.
In 2020, Jeff Okudah’s career got off to a rough start, mostly due to injuries, but he has broken out for the Lions this year. The ninth overall pick, CJ Henderson, has been a disaster, but AJ Terrell, who went 16th overall, is already one of the game’s best players at his position. A high percentage of the best cornerbacks of this generation were very high selections. Examples include Marshon Lattimore, Jalen Ramsey, Stephon Gilmore and Patrick Peterson.
Here is Surtain showing his immense value:
Surtain was the ninth overall selection in the 2021 NFL Draft, which might be very close to where the Steelers end up picking. These highlights are from his rookie season, in which he was spectacular. He's even better now in 2022.
Think the Steelers could use someone like him?
This is something that the Steelers should strongly consider with their first pick. That highly touted cornerback could team up with Wallace, Jackson, Sutton and Pierre to give the defense tremendous depth at a position that is always in demand.
That player could match up to Cooper or if it were last week, Higgins. If Chase and Higgins are both on the field, the Steelers could roll Fitzpatrick to Chase’s side and leave their new top cornerback on Higgins. Or they could still play sides and just have another danger zone that opposing quarterbacks would greatly prefer to avoid.
The Steelers need a lot of things this offseason and have plenty of resources to get what they need, but grabbing an ultra-talented cornerback with their first pick is something that should be very much in play.