Got to fix the run defense

I'm not going to research the collective stats on this but did the vastly improved secondary against deep passes cause other teams to shy away from their early season passing games (an Achilles heel for Steelers D in recent past) and expose a vulnerable run D as the season progressed. A 3rd place ranking at 3.8 ypc against the run is gathered from the entire season. Either way, Steelers lack of O and points is the real culprit in that it never dictated other teams to change their in-game O schemes.

 

Steelers fans figure since the best running team in the NFL and historically too I think ran over the Steelers in the final game means our defense sucks lol. No, it means Ravens knew our offense could not be respected at all so they gassed us out.

 

the run D is pretty damn good especially factoring other parts of the defense that is stellar

 

we were 5th most in coughing up the ball while having a 27th ranked time of possesion. You can put the 74 steelers transformed to today's times and we would still suck

 

Imagine being on this defense when you cannot get a sustained offensive drive and being on the field as much as they are now. It would blow your mind.

 

I've been saying this for months...our defense is incomplete. We have bookend pass rushers that make the whole thing go. Yes, Heyword in the middle is stout. But it's Watt and Dupree that stir this drink.

Beyond that, we've got Fitz and Haden. That's it.

Our secondary is a liability and will hold this defense back from being elite. And guess what an improved secondary would do other than make it tough to pass on...it makes us tough to run on. Why? Because we don't need to commit more resources to help the secondary survive. A solid secondary gives the pass rush more time and allows one more roamer in the box or to spy a mobile qb or hot rb.

Shore up the secondary and this defense will keep offensive coordinators up at night.

 

The Steelers finished third in the NFL in passing yards allowed per game, fifth overall. They were second in interceptions and sixth in yards allowed per attempt. Of course, the pass rush is a big part of that and they ended up leading the league in sacks, but the secondary was much better than it has been in the past. Haden had a couple of rough games, but he was a legit No. 1 cornerback and Nelson was a solid No. 2. Fitzpatrick is an outstanding free safety.

They do need to upgrade at strong safety, but you keep going on as if this is a deeply flawed defense and that simply is not the case.

 

Yeah, yeah it is the case. I understand that some people don't understand the game enough to actually watch it and determine what is happening, so they can only resort to statistics to argue their opinion. And that's okay, really. Spouting off numbers makes those people feel important, and intelligent, and part of the conversation. Again, nothing wrong with that.

But statistics never scored a point in the history of the NFL. Statistics never had to come back from an injury or use leverage to overcome a physically dominating opponent. Statistics also never has nor ever will be a substitute for experience and the ability to break down a play, a series of plays, or an entre gameplan based on visual footage.

There is a reason why EVERY coach or player talks about getting into the film room. You haven't heard anyone of regard state that they needed to look over stats to prepare for a game or to seek improvement in their own performance.

 

Numbers wise they looked pretty formidable and we all saw the same action to back those numbers.we also saw the same 3rd and long play being exposed as were used too. And the same staunch run D get gouged at times. The opposition gets paid to do their part as well so there is always gonna be a gimme in sense.

I think the 3-4 scheme is outdAted in this current era but sure when you rack up sacks it kind of masks it all periodically. I think they need a new coordinator here on this side of the ball especially if they're sticking to 3-4 which they will for obvious reasons. Schematically/situationally there are things that can be shored up quite a bit. Especially with a little more creativity and a lot less status quo but don't know we'll see it without philosophical/situational minded change anytime soon.

 

I have both the eye test and the numbers. You have nothing but a false claim that you can't support.

You are trying an argument from authority, but you have none. You don't have a single fact to support your claim that you are a good judge of what you see on a football field. That was part of what I did for a living as a journalist, so in terms of what we have both presented in terms of credentials, mine are better. That doesn't mean my credentials are anything special. They aren't. It means the results of my eye test are every bit as valid as yours, but most likely better.

That brings us to statistics, which are all in my favor. Your silly, snide dismissal of statistics just exposes the weakness of your claim. More importantly, the logical interpretation of the team makes it far more likely that the defense was better than the statistics reflect, not worse. A terrible offense also affects the defense. The lack of time of possession and overabundance of turnovers made the defense look worse than it really was, not better.

 

Statistics are great for comparing. They are also useful in determining trends and probability and can assist in decision making. I'm not dismissing statistics. Harbaugh uses analytics as well as, if not better than, anyone in the league. It is a large part of their success.

But he doesn't use statistics to tell him where his deficiencies are. That's not what they are for. And I guarantee you that he doesn't give a rip how their defense compares to ours on paper. Our great and powerful defense is spending a very different weekend than his is this week.

He will, however, have goals for his defense based on stats. Based on opponent, he will determine how many yards rushing they should allow, how many points they should give up. If they make or miss their marks, he will use film to determine the reason and make adjustments accordingly.

You simply do not understand what you're talking about. And again, that's okay. You should still feel good about yourself. Other than using the exact same rebuttal, verbatim, to defend every opinion you've ever been challenged on, I'm sure you have good qualities to be proud of. I would think, however, that an esteemed journalist such as yourself would be able to construct a unique attempt at confutation. Keep trying. Words are hard.

 

Defenses can't win by themselves. The Ravens' defense spending its time differently this weekend because it also has the league's best offense. Interesting how you tried to leave that bit out. Facts simply are not your friend. That is why you seem to run away from them so often.

You have lost miserably in this argument. You are relying on ignoring the facts and telling us just to trust your expertise, yet you have given us no reason to trust your expertise. You have offered no valid support at all for your misguided opinions. It is a terrible argument horribly executed. In the kind of simple terms even you can understand, what you wrote was bad and you should feel bad.

 

Yeah, you're probably right.