For the third straight offseason, the Pittsburgh Steelers have made a strong effort to rebuild a significant portion of their defensive roster. Results have been mixed, but this time around, it really feels like the aggressive moves the Steelers have made will pay off. Here are the four things we really want to see more of from the Steelers defense in 2019.
More base defense
You might not realize this but the Steelers are still a 3-4 base defense. Unfortunately, the sheer magnitude of sub-packages Pittsburgh is forced to run might make you forget. We really hope the additions of guys like Devin Bush and Mark Barron will give the Steelers’ coaches the flexibility to defend the pass and the run better out of base defense.
More pass rush from the outside linebackers
Pittsburgh found lots of creative and unique ways to attempt to rush the passer in 2018, which resulted in the most sacks in the league. Unfortunately, total pressures weren’t at the top and this can be attributed to having guys out of position rushing the passer too often. We’d love to see T.J. Watt and Bud Dupree able to just tee off on opposing quarterbacks without having to worry about coverage behind them.
More man coverage
Speaking of coverage, how about more man coverage this year? Once again, the theme has been to get faster and more athletic, which should translate to fewer instances where the linebackers and defensive backs have to sit back in zone coverage and wait for the play to come to them.
More turnovers
The Steelers were among the league’s worst in turnover differential in 2018. This comes back to the notion of playing passive and allowing too many plays to happen in front of them. With better athletes on the field, the defense should be allowed to take more chances on turnovers knowing their teammates will back them up.
