This Defense

I was thinking about this yesterday well before the game. Who on this defense is a clutch play maker? Watt is great and has lots of stats. Tuitt put up some sacks this year. Fitzpatrick had a few INTs, but any decent safety should no?
I am in my 40s and did not witness the 70s Steel Curtain. When I think back to the 90s and 2000s teams I can clearly recall feeling like Troy or Harrison or Lloyd or Woodson or....someone was going to make the play, not to just pad stats, but to actually do something in a clutch moment when it is needed.

I know some of these guys are really good players, but I just don't see any of them as consistently clutch.

 

Harrison Troy woodley all have made clutch plays in the playoffs.

still waiting on cam, tuitt, watt to do anything.

 

"There's pain associated with where we are right now. There's no running away from that. That's football and that's life."
I'll let you guess who said that

 

Ghandi?

 

I'm not sure those guys really exist any more. There are some around, but defense is a UNIT not a singular player. Last night, we didn't win the one on one battles. Your telling me that Watt had zero sacks last night against a backup RT? Either he was being held ALL game or he just didn't perform last night. Your telling me Heyward didn't have any sacks last night against a backup LG?

I said before the game, the most important thing about the game to me was the Steelers playing with the lead. It is really really hard to be committed to stopping an offense when you don't have the opportunity to make them one dimensional. We didn't sit on the run cause we couldn't. Butler was guessing all game and it was bad.

Missing Bush and Dupree hurt. Missing Highsmith hurt. Marsh was getting run over. We didn't even have enough tape of him to correct some of the reads he did in earlier games. The Browns exploited it.

 

I've been saying Heyward and Tuitt are overrated for years. Steelers screwed up after Super Bowl XLV loss by sticking with the 3-4. Steelers should have started drafting 4-3 DEs and DTs. 4-3 is much more effective vs. Brady, Rodgers, Mahomes... the best QBs in the league.

 

This. The Browns had all the cards with such a huge lead, Mayfield was able to hand it off or throw it quickly, how is a defence expected to get sacks in that situation. They had the Steelers over a barrel.

That first quarter disaster with all those turnovers killed us. It’s clutching at straws to castigate the defence. Last night is 90% on Ben and the offence IMO, it was a complete and total disaster.

 

Yep and 4-1-6 and 4-2-5 are very effective if you get in Single High and zero looks the other DB'S have to match up and play different man/zone concepts ..You can't let guys run free of the LOS in todays Football on any level the concepts on O are just to good and the Athletes are just to good..Plus the 3-4 puts 4 LB'S on the field that's to many as Teams consistanly use RB'S and TE'S that LB'S just can't cover...Almost all the High Schools in our Conference have abandoned the 3-4 and 4-3 stuff most are using 5-2 Monster single high or 4-1-6 or 4-2-5 concepts ...

 

I want to be clear, we needed guys to make plays last night and it didn't happen, but let's not forget that 2 of our playmakers, or splash play makers, are both at home. Our Dline guys are fine, but aren't splash play guys, especially when you don't have guys who are on the outside forcing help for the OLBs. Cassius Marsh took more snaps last night then he ever should have. That isn't the coaches fault, that is the circumstances we were forced to deal with, but let's not forget we didn't get home against backups. I still am confused about how Watt faces a backup RT and never gets home. He is a playmaker. A serious playmaker. The guy either held on the whole night and the refs just turned away or he just was clueless last night and I don't think it was the 2nd one.

 

And let's talk about what our current defense truly is. Another resurrection or iteration of Lebeau's antiquated and obsolete defensive schemes. This organization cannot stop trying to go back to the future and it's beyond pathetic at this point.

 

Season ending injuries to any of the starting 4 LBs in the 3-4 is devastating.... as we have witnessed with Shazier, Bush and Dupree.

 

also need to stop with these hybrid players lol. just stick to a scheme haha

 

I agree and I am not saying last night was the defenses fault at all. This truly was something I was pondering earlier in the day as to my eye...we haven't really had that player in some time.
Unfortunately we needed it last night because of the position the offense put us in and again...it was just nowhere to be found.
Sucks we were down to Marsh at OLB, but many of our big names were still out there and going against an equally depleted Browns roster.

 

The defense was banged up but last night was all on offense. You can’t have a horrible snap from center td to open game. Them a million other turnovers as well. Now I will complain that the defensive coordinat is clueless how to stop five wide and that was proven against bills and browns.

 

You cant judge this defense (or any defense) when the offense keeps them on the field as much as ours was on the field. The amount of injuries and the defense being tired late in games is all attributed to the fact that our defense had to play a whole games worth of football usually before the first half was over. This defense is filled with playmakers and clutch play makers. How many times did we see the defense make an interception or get the Offense the ball back only for them to be back on the field 3 plays later. THis defense was one of the best in the league for most of the season. They got worn down by having no offense a majority of the time.

 

Yea this D was awful last night overall. And hearing Tomlin spew the same **** after the game about it is really starting to become insufferable and tough to listen too time and time again. Steelers fans at this point are just tired and over Mike Tomlin’s bull**** and little cliches and catch phrases.

 

I guess the ironic thing was Browns were getting rid of the ball fast, not letting a pass rush get there. The exact thing Steelers have been trying to do on offense all year, but we suck at it.

I guess I can forgive our Defense for no sacks, but still ... you would like some plays to be made. Cam Heyward had only 1 tackle last night vs. a 3rd stringer.


I know I rag on Minkah, but that dude just isn't around the ball anymore. If they are not throwing his way, then Butler needs to move him in position to make plays, we spent a 1st round pick on this guy for crying out loud. That is a lot to give up for a guy who plays center field and keeps his jersey clean.

 

The defense was getting GASHED by the run in the 1st half. It was ugly. But they made an adjustment and shut them down pretty good. They finished with 124 yds rushing but most of that came in the first Qtr.

But they had no room for error in that second half. And Baker made just enough plays to put it away in the 4th. Ben killed them with the picks.

We all knew last night at the start of the 4th, when we had all the momentum and they punted, it was a mistake. They let the Browns catch their breath and have a bit of a moral victory. Just when you had them on the ropes. Then they hit the 50 yard play to Chubb and it was ballgame.

 

Unfortunately, the Steelers are the only team in the NFL every year dealing with injuries.

It's amazing they can win at all.

 

If the defense held those TOs to field goals then it wouldn’t have gotten that far out of reach but they didn’t so they get blame also can’t just blame the offense

 

Let's not overlook the fact that this defense lost 2 huge playmakers in Dupree and Bush. You don't just replace 2 playmakers like that. Watt had pressure on several occasions last night, but with a huge lead, the Browns didn't have to drop back and throw, the opportunities for sacks just weren't there. Unlike our OC, the Browns understood their personal and adjusted to limit the big plays by players like Watt. This defense is a VERY different animal if Dupree is in there pressuring the QB and crashing from opposite of Watt. How do you double both?

I agree 100% with the idea we should have switched to a 4-3 base D years ago. I just don't see it under Tomlin. He doesn't change easily.

 

Yes, ideally they’d have held the Browns to a FG on some of those short fields. They should never have been put in that position however. Perhaps 80/20 or 70/30 might be more accurate. Either way, the offence failed this team utterly in Q1 and the Browns with that backfield are one of the teams you don’t want to get in a hole against.

To be fair to both sides of the ball, there was a monumental amount of bad luck involved, absolutely everything fell the Browns way.

 

I mean everything no way in a millions years would anyone see that first quarter coming smh when that ball flew over Ben head I was like it’s going to be a long game

 

Good points. I think the Browns tried to to go with some quick throws to try to neutralize some of the pressure but understood. There were backups along that line that should have been exploited by even the old cross fire blitz.

 

They should have been able to be exploited just by creating some one on one matchups. Shouldn't have taken much else. Heyward and Watt? Come on, those guys win one on one vs. a backup 75% of the time, but last night they kept us off balance with good plays to combat what we were doing. We blitz? They run a screen and beat us. They blew open holes around Marsh all night. He couldn't hold the edge and it showed.