The Steelers have now completed eight practices at training camp, with just six remaining on the schedule at Saint Vincent College. And every time the team puts on full pads, the defense has dominated practice.
One way to look at that is the offense is bound to be brutal. Some fans might resort to that type of thinking. However, it's probably time to consider that maybe, just maybe, this defense could be that damned good.
"I think they're the best defense I've ever seen," DK Metcalf said today.
The defense as a whole has dominated each padded practice. The run periods of 11-on-11 with live tackling have heavily favored the defense. Sometimes defensive tackles are blowing up the play immediately. Other times Patrick Queen or Payton Wilson are shooting gaps or someone such as Alex Highsmith, Nick Herbig or Jack Sawyer are flying off the edge to record tackles for loss or minimal gains. Even the secondary has gotten in on the action in the run game. In fact, Joey Porter Jr. kicked off the first run period of the first padded practice with two TFLs on Jaylen Warren and Kaleb Johnson, respectively, setting the tone for all the practices that have followed.
Speaking of the secondary, they are living up to the billing thus far. Jalen Ramsey is playing all over the place, playing a good amount of man coverage and also blitzing from the slot. Darius Slay and Porter have looked like the great man coverage cornerbacks they're known to be, DeShon Elliott looks like the exact same guy we saw last season and Juan Thornhill has been very impressive playing free safety, tracking passes and recording several passes defensed thus far.
What's encouraging of the defense so far in camp is no matter how well they've practiced, they aren't satisfied with anything. No matter how much it looks like they're suffocating the offense, they feel like there's still a long way to go.
"We're just a week or two in," Herbig said. "We're just out there getting a feel for each other. There are a lot of new guys, a lot of unfamiliar faces."
In run defense during live tackling sessions, the defensive tackles are doing a great job thus far of eating up blocks, which is making things a lot easier for Queen, Wilson and the rest of the linebacker group. That was an issue down the stretch last season when the Steelers struggled against the run, especially in the playoff loss to the Ravens.
Yahya Black has been one of the standouts on the defensive line, using his size and length to win consistently at the defensive end position. He's also probably batted down the most passes at the line of scrimmage. Derrick Harmon looks like the real deal as a first-rounder, and he had a great day today in run blocking drills, beating offensive linemen the majority of the time, especially on run blocks that required Harmon to move laterally.
The secondary is also playing a lot more man coverage in the secondary, playing to the strengths of Porter, Slay and Ramsey. Even Brandin Echols and James Pierre are having some strong performances in this type of defense. More man coverage means more blitzing, which begs the question of whether or not this will, in fact, be a more aggressive defense:
"I think so," Queen said. "I think it depends on who you're playing, though. There's risk involved with that, and I think we've just gotta be smart about who it's against and when you're doing it. But I definitely think we're going to be more aggressive."
Based off what the Steelers have done on defense over the past few seasons, more aggressive is something that might be needed. I know that it's not because Tomlin hasn't wanted to be more aggressive, blitz more, play more man coverage, etc. A big part of why they haven't done that in recent years is because of what they've had on the second and third levels.
But now, with the secondary loaded with talent and experience, with the linebacker room having Queen much more comfortable as the quarterback of the defense and having Wilson primed for a Year 2 jump, and with the defensive front built with much more depth, the pieces are in place to be more aggressive.
Not only will this defense be more aggressive, but they believe they can man cover any team's receivers. They believe because of that, they're going to get to the quarterback more. And so far, while the focus can be on how much the offense appears to be struggling, some of the focus has to be on how good this defense might just be.
So, when the defense puts on dominating performances like today, which included a 6-1 win in seven shots, that's par for the course for them.
"That's what we're expected to do," Herbig said. "We're the Pittsburgh Steelers. We're the Steel Curtain. We play great defense. That's a testament to the offense, that they're able to go against us all the time. It's just iron on iron, and we make each other better every day."
THE ASYLUM
Analysis: Just how good is this defense, really?
The Steelers have now completed eight practices at training camp, with just six remaining on the schedule at Saint Vincent College. And every time the team puts on full pads, the defense has dominated practice.
One way to look at that is the offense is bound to be brutal. Some fans might resort to that type of thinking. However, it's probably time to consider that maybe, just maybe, this defense could be that damned good.
"I think they're the best defense I've ever seen," DK Metcalf said today.
The defense as a whole has dominated each padded practice. The run periods of 11-on-11 with live tackling have heavily favored the defense. Sometimes defensive tackles are blowing up the play immediately. Other times Patrick Queen or Payton Wilson are shooting gaps or someone such as Alex Highsmith, Nick Herbig or Jack Sawyer are flying off the edge to record tackles for loss or minimal gains. Even the secondary has gotten in on the action in the run game. In fact, Joey Porter Jr. kicked off the first run period of the first padded practice with two TFLs on Jaylen Warren and Kaleb Johnson, respectively, setting the tone for all the practices that have followed.
Speaking of the secondary, they are living up to the billing thus far. Jalen Ramsey is playing all over the place, playing a good amount of man coverage and also blitzing from the slot. Darius Slay and Porter have looked like the great man coverage cornerbacks they're known to be, DeShon Elliott looks like the exact same guy we saw last season and Juan Thornhill has been very impressive playing free safety, tracking passes and recording several passes defensed thus far.
What's encouraging of the defense so far in camp is no matter how well they've practiced, they aren't satisfied with anything. No matter how much it looks like they're suffocating the offense, they feel like there's still a long way to go.
"We're just a week or two in," Herbig said. "We're just out there getting a feel for each other. There are a lot of new guys, a lot of unfamiliar faces."
In run defense during live tackling sessions, the defensive tackles are doing a great job thus far of eating up blocks, which is making things a lot easier for Queen, Wilson and the rest of the linebacker group. That was an issue down the stretch last season when the Steelers struggled against the run, especially in the playoff loss to the Ravens.
Yahya Black has been one of the standouts on the defensive line, using his size and length to win consistently at the defensive end position. He's also probably batted down the most passes at the line of scrimmage. Derrick Harmon looks like the real deal as a first-rounder, and he had a great day today in run blocking drills, beating offensive linemen the majority of the time, especially on run blocks that required Harmon to move laterally.
The secondary is also playing a lot more man coverage in the secondary, playing to the strengths of Porter, Slay and Ramsey. Even Brandin Echols and James Pierre are having some strong performances in this type of defense. More man coverage means more blitzing, which begs the question of whether or not this will, in fact, be a more aggressive defense:
"I think so," Queen said. "I think it depends on who you're playing, though. There's risk involved with that, and I think we've just gotta be smart about who it's against and when you're doing it. But I definitely think we're going to be more aggressive."
Based off what the Steelers have done on defense over the past few seasons, more aggressive is something that might be needed. I know that it's not because Tomlin hasn't wanted to be more aggressive, blitz more, play more man coverage, etc. A big part of why they haven't done that in recent years is because of what they've had on the second and third levels.
But now, with the secondary loaded with talent and experience, with the linebacker room having Queen much more comfortable as the quarterback of the defense and having Wilson primed for a Year 2 jump, and with the defensive front built with much more depth, the pieces are in place to be more aggressive.
Not only will this defense be more aggressive, but they believe they can man cover any team's receivers. They believe because of that, they're going to get to the quarterback more. And so far, while the focus can be on how much the offense appears to be struggling, some of the focus has to be on how good this defense might just be.
So, when the defense puts on dominating performances like today, which included a 6-1 win in seven shots, that's par for the course for them.
"That's what we're expected to do," Herbig said. "We're the Pittsburgh Steelers. We're the Steel Curtain. We play great defense. That's a testament to the offense, that they're able to go against us all the time. It's just iron on iron, and we make each other better every day."
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