After the premature adulation of the Steelers’ defense this year, even with this offseason’s upgrades, they have much to prove. While they have had the highest-paid defense annually, last year’s edition was supposed to live up to the price tag. It didn’t, creating a legion of skeptics, among them Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
“With this defense, I’m in wait-and-see mode, and I think everyone should be”, the Steelers beat writer said on 93.7 The Fan. “They were not a very good defense last year. When it came to total yards allowed, I think they were 27th in the NFL. The only thing that saved them was the sacks and turnovers, and if they don’t get those, they’re gonna be in trouble”.
With the trade for Jalen Ramsey, the signing of Darius Slay and others, and the drafting of Derrick Harmon, the Steelers convinced themselves they were going to have a historic unit. Of course, some of the least productive members of that unit made the biggest promises. But why should this year be different, when last year’s additions didn’t bring the change required?
“Sebastian Joseph-Day was added to the defensive line rotation. Jamel Dean, Jaquan Brisker is new, so they have some new pieces over there. Patrick Graham was given some nice tools to work with”, Fittipaldo said, breaking down some of the major changes the Steelers made on defense this offseason. “But we talk about it every year, the NFL’s highest-paid defense underachieve, underachieve, underachieve”.
“Until I see them do better than expected, I’m gonna be in wait-and-see mode with that unit”.
One thing outside of the Steelers’ control last year was DeShon Elliott’s injury, which forced them to reimagine their defense. They moved Jalen Ramsey to safety, which they didn’t want to do. But when players like Darius Slay and Juan Thornhill fall on their faces, you certainly deserve some blame.
Will Jamel Dean contribute to the long line of over-the-hill failures the Steelers have added at cornerback in recent years? Starting with Patrick Peterson in 2023, that plan hasn’t exactly worked out. Dean should be the best of them, in theory, but it still seems wise to be cautious.
Both he and Jaquan Brisker also have some concerning injury history, and the Steelers already have enough availability concerns on defense with guys like DeShon Elliott, Derrick Harmon, and the outside linebacker room.
And while you might want to point to coaching for some of the Steelers’ previous failings on defense, it’s still not an easy thing to transition to a new scheme. Especially this offseason, this will mark the biggest change they’ve seen in a generation or more. It helps that Mike McCarthy kept some Mike Tomlin assistants on his coaching staff, but there’s a lot new for players on this roster who have never known anything new before in their careers.