CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Heading into Sunday's matchup with the Panthers, the Steelers' defense took their prior six quarters of football very personally.
After being gouged for 361 yards on the ground against the Falcons and Ravens in the previous two weeks, the Steelers held the Panthers to an astounding 21 rushing yards en route to a 24-16 victory at Bank of America Stadium.
"I thought we did a good job of minimizing their run on defense," Mike Tomlin said. "Obviously, it’s big because we’ve been leaking here the last six quarters or so defensively in that area. I’m appreciative of the efforts."
"I think that's where it started. We really set the game with that first drive, stopping the run," Alex Highsmith said after the game. "That's one of the reasons we were successful because we were able to stop the run."
Just as Highsmith said, the defense did set the tone right away, stopping D'Onta Foreman behind the line of scrimmage on the very first play of the game for a 1-yard loss:
They turned right around on the next play and held Chuba Hubbard to a modest 3-yard gain, setting up third and long, and inevitably forcing the Panthers to punt the ball.
This is a Panthers team that's been averaging 154.6 rushing yards per game since they traded away Christian McCaffrey, and tallied 408 rushing yards in their previous two games. Making Carolina one-dimensional was going to be required in order to avoid the dreaded ninth loss, which would guarantee the Steelers' first losing season in 19 years.
"We knew that was an emphasis because we knew the type of running game that they had," Highsmith said. "They have a couple of really good backs. To win the game, we had to do that."
After the offense scored a touchdown on their first drive of the game, the Panthers answered with an attack through the air. The Steelers' secondary was unable to stop Panthers' quarterback Sam Darnold from moving the ball downfield, and the Panthers evened the score.
However, the Panthers's passing attack is and has been inconsistent throughout the season. Taking away their strength of relying on the run game played exactly into what the Steelers wanted, and that resulted in three straight three-and-outs for the rest of the first half, where the Panthers racked up a total of 14 rushing yards.
Meanwhile, the offense did their job, and the Steelers took a 14-7 lead into halftime.
This is all coming after two weeks where the once top-10 Steelers' rush defense had plummeted to 15th in the NFL after two horrid performances against the run. The Steelers made a concerted effort to not just execute their schemes more efficiently, but to up the physicality, especially against a team that likes to use extra linemen. Even if it required more big guys in the trenches, the Steelers were going to have to be committed to stopping the run in every way.
"A little bit of schematics, a little bit of guys just getting off blocks. I think that's just what it comes down to," T.J. Watt said. "Being able to make tackles, getting as many hats to the ball as possible."
That would be put to the test in the second half. On the Panthers' first drive of the second half, which came after an incredible 21-play, 91-yard drive that resulted in a Steelers' touchdown to take a 21-7 lead, Darnold found Hubbard through the air for a 45-yard gain. This is something the defense has struggled with at different times during the season -- closing out games with a lead in the second half.
However, the defense stood up and stiffened by exorcising another demon that's plagued them this season: Sacking the quarterback. On back-to-back plays, Highsmith and Cam Heyward blew through the Panthers' offensive front and brought Darnold to the ground:
The defense was then really put to the test. After those two sacks forced Carolina into fourth and 27, Marcus Allen committed a crippling and stupid unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, gifting the Panthers with a free first down. And the defense didn't have much time to answer as the Panthers quickly moved into field goal range.
This is where the Steelers failed in their loss to the Bengals -- allowing them to score touchdowns instead of settling for field goals. The defense forced the Panthers to settle for three points there. And when the offense failed to produce points on the ensuing drive, the Panthers threatened once again.
Only this time, Carolina was knocking on the door with a first and goal at the 4-yard line after a questionable pass interference call on Cam Sutton. This is where the Steelers' physicality was once again tested. Once again, they answered the call.
They stopped Foreman on first and goal for a 2-yard gain, then Highsmith blew up another running attempt with this play on second down:
Highsmith just flies in from the other side after manhandling his blocker and brings down Foreman for a loss. This put the pressure back on Darnold and the passing game, and Heyward and Watt came through with a sack to force the Panthers to settle for a field goal, preserving the lead at 21-13.
The defense knew they needed to put together a performance like this. They took the loss to the Ravens really hard, and made a concerted effort to be much more physical this week. That started with the team's first padded practice in at least three weeks (padded practices are far less common late in the season to preserve players' health).
"The past couple weeks wasn't ourselves," Highsmith said. "I think it started with a great week of practice. Honestly, one of our best weeks of practice in a while."
Even though the secondary's performance was far from perfect (Darnold averaged 9.8 yards per attempt), they did enough to support a defense that was out to set the tone in the trenches. And that's coming off losing an accomplished run defender such as Chris Wormley for the season due to a knee injury.
"Like we talked about at the beginning of the week, they put unique big people packages on the field and you have to match that. I thought we did with DeMarvin Leal. I thought he did a good job," Tomlin said. "More than anything, I just think there’s nothing mystical about dealing with the run. Usually, it’s about guys coming off of blocks and making tackles."
As overcomplicated as we can make the game of football, sometimes all it boils down to is being the more physical team. The Steelers certainly were Sunday afternoon, and it forced the Panthers to try and win the game with a far less accomplished aspect of their game.
"It allows us to be one-dimensional and pin our ears back, especially when our offense is moving the ball like they were today," Watt said. "We need to keep it up."
