Mike Tomlin and Teryl Austin were recently part of the Steelers' contingent at the Senior Bowl practices in Mobile, Ala., and the duo did nothing but study and salivate over the strong class of defensive linemen.

For anyone who watched the Eagles throttle the Chiefs in Super Bowl LIX, 40-22, the champs showed everyone why.

Too many people will look at the box score and see 40 points scored or see that Jalen Hurts was named the game's most valuable player, and they'll assume this was some great offensive display. But, just as the Seahawks did to the Broncos in Super Bowl XLVIII with their legendary 'Legion of Boom' defense, the lopsided score was a direct result of a dominant, historic performance on the side of the ball that is known to win championships.

"Defense played their ass off. They played how they played all year," Hurts said after the game. "I truly believe offense wins games but defense wins championships. How our defense has been able to play is a great testament to them."

14 of the Eagles' points should be credited to the defense. First, Cooper DeJean put up six points himself with a pick-six:

Just a couple series later, Zack Baun intercepted Patrick Mahomes to give the Eagles the ball at the Kansas City 14-yard line:

This takes nothing away from Hurts. He made one bad mistake, but otherwise played a game deserving of MVP consideration. But, he's abundantly correct about his team's defense. They won the game. And they deserved a 40-6 final score, not the two garbage time touchdowns with two-point conversions that skewed the final result.

Only four defensive linemen/edge defenders have won Super Bowl MVP honors, and two of those were in the same game when Randy White and Harvey Martin were co-MVPs in the Cowboys' Super Bowl XII victory. There could very much be a case made for any combination of the Eagles' front four. A deep dive into the numbers backs it up.

According to NFL Next Gen Stats, the Eagles generated 16 pressures and sacked Mahomes six times, the most in his career. And, they did this without blitzing across 42 dropbacks. Not one blitz.

I've spent plenty of time analyzing the Steelers' defense from this past season, and definitely have implored how more blitzing not only should result in more times of getting to the quarterback, but also makes them a bit more unpredictable. However, that theory doesn't hold up well if the front four just wins.

That's what the Eagles did. They didn't get cute or try to be unpredictable. They put any combination of their two edge rushers and two interior defensive linemen out there and just let them win again and again. And again.

And it's not like they used a bunch of different packages to disguise things against Mahomes. Sure, the Eagles utilized their depth. 18 different players logged at least 12% of the defensive snaps. However, they never had less than five defensive backs on the field. According to NFL Next Gen Stats, the Eagles were in their nickel defense in all but one snap, and in that lone other snap, they were in dime.

This an extreme version but not deviation from how the Eagles played defense throughout the season. They blitzed only 19.3% of the time during the season, the fifth-lowest rate in the NFL. They played in their nickel defense 80.5% of the time this season, only the Commanders and Texans utilized nickel at a higher rate. They tailored their game plan to defend Mahomes and the Chiefs, but stayed within their identity -- the same identity that drove Steelers fans crazy this season.

Part of this success is usually credited to the Eagles' defensive backs and Baun at linebacker, a Defensive Player of the Year finalist. They've got a great mixture of talent in that secondary, including veteran Darius Slay and rookies DeJean and Quinyon Mitchell at cornerback. It's a whole heck of a lot easier to only rush four if the seven dropping back into coverage can lock things down on the back end. And a big reason why the Eagles had the NFL's No. 1 pass defense is because they have a great secondary and group of linebackers.

But that's not what happened Sunday night. The Eagles' time to pressure in the Super Bowl was a staggering 2.64 seconds. During the season, the Chiefs' time to pressure against was 2.93 seconds, the second-most amount of time in the league. Mahomes was pressured 30.3% of the time during the season, but the Eagles pressured him 38.1% of the time Sunday night. The Chiefs simply hadn't dealt with Mahomes having somebody in his lap that often.

Go back and watch those two interceptions. Mahomes had to roll out on the pick six because he had been sacked the previous two plays, so they moved the pocket to give him time. On the Baun interception, Josh Sweat pushed All-Pro guard Joe Thuney back into Mahomes' plant leg, affecting the throw.

To reiterate, the Eagles wreaked havoc all night long, and did it with only four guys rushing. Every single time. Never had less than five defensive backs on the field. Every single time.

All of this is why the Steelers are hellbent on prioritizing defensive line in this upcoming draft class. Sure, part of the reason is they gave up 299 rushing yards in their playoff loss to the Ravens. I had multiple people in the organization tell me while I was in Mobile that leaves a bad taste in their collective mouth.

But, this is also because this is the way the Steelers want to play defense. They proved that this year. The 'Blitzburgh' days are over. No longer do the Steelers rank among the league's highest-blitzing teams, and they haven't since 2020. In 2024, the Steelers ranked 15th, blitzing 27% of the time. But, they only sacked the quarterback 6.3% of the time, 0.3% less often than the Eagles in the regular season, despite Philadelphia blitzing 7.7% less than Pittsburgh. So, maybe dialing up blitz after blitz isn't the answer. It's just about getting the best front four and dominating with them.

The Steelers already have a good start there. Despite some pessimism on T.J. Watt's down year -- and I use that term loosely -- he's still one of the game's elite edge defenders. Alex Highsmith and Nick Herbig are nice complements on the other side. Cam Heyward proved a lot of people wrong in 2024, including Father Time, turning in an All-Pro season at age 35. If he remains healthy, there's little reason to believe he's going to slow down.

However, that doesn't mean the Steelers can't get better up front and also prepare for life after Heyward ahead of when he decides to retire. Larry Ogunjobi has one year left on his contract, and he's battled injuries throughout his tenure here. Keeanu Benton has more promise as a defensive end than as a nose tackle, but still has plenty more room to grow after two NFL seasons. The rest of the group are depth options, not full-time starters. Yeah, they can have games here and there in which the front four have dominant performances, but it's not in the Eagles' class. Nowhere close.

This just so happens to be a great year to address defensive line, so the Steelers aren't aimless in their approach. This class is full of talented interior defenders, and there could be several that are taken in the first round. Guys such as Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant out of Michigan, Ole Miss' Walter Nolen, Ohio State's Tyleik Wiliams, South Carolina's T.J. Sanders, Tennessee's Omarr Norman-Lott, Kentucky's Deone Walker and fast riser Darius Alexander out of Toledo all could be taken during the first two days of the draft. There was a lot of homework done on this position during Senior Bowl week, and there will be much more work done during the Combine, pro days and pre-draft visits.

Like it or not, the Steelers' way of playing defense likely isn't changing. Tomlin and Austin aren't going anywhere. Sure, there could be some tweaks. Even Watt said at season's end that he needs to be open to moving around more often than just rushing from his same spot on the left edge.

However, the Eagles proved this season and in the Super Bowl that the blueprint of just winning with the front four can work in today's NFL. Sunday night wasn't an outlier. The Eagles had the No. 1 total defense this season, the first to win the Lombardi Trophy since the 2015 Broncos. Yes, it takes good coaching. Yes, the Steelers need to improve their secondary, as well. Cornerback is also a position of need. However, getting a great group that can win consistently up front still works.

The Steelers already had this plan in motion before the Super Bowl, but Sunday night proved its validity. Now, it's about identifying the right players to get closer to that goal.