How to Fix the Pittsburgh Steelers' Defensive Woes

The 2014 NFL season has not started off according to plan for the Pittsburgh Steelers. The hope was that with an active offseason of moves, this team would be ready to find their way back to the top of the AFC North again. Pittsburgh has suffered through back-to-back 8-8 seasons and a two-year drought from the playoffs.

One area that Pittsburgh really focused on in its offseason was upgrading a slow, aging defense. Here’s a quick look at some of the comings and goings of the Steelers defense:

Out	In
Vince Williams, LB	Ryan Shazier, LB
Ziddy Hood, DL	Stephon Tuitt, DL
Al Woods, DL	Cam Thomas, DL
Ryan Clark, S	Mike Mitchell, S

On paper, these changes felt really strong. In particular, Ryan Shazier and Mike Mitchell seem like massive upgrades in athleticism at their respective positions, and Mitchell on the field over Ryan Clark really helps drop the average age on that side of the football.

Unfortunately, two games into the season, many of these new pieces are still trying to get wedged into their roles. Yes, the defense is younger. And yes, the defense is faster. However, the problems with this group run much deeper than birthdays and 40 times.

Poor technique has hamstrung this team all season. Pittsburgh Tribune-Review writer Mark Kaboly charted the missed tackles and their impact in the 26-6 loss to the Baltimore Ravens, and the results are terrifying.

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Worse than the missed tackles were the extra yards they provided the Ravens. The 16 missed tackles resulted in 93 more yards (29 percent of Baltimore's total).

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It is hard to reconcile that on 70 offensive snaps, the Steelers had 16 missed tackles. This is the Steeler Curtain for crying out loud. Nevertheless, what did we see? Players trying to tackle with their shoulders, failing to wrap up and defenders coming in with their heads down. 

Nick Wass/Associated Press

These are men who get paid exorbitant amounts of money to do their job, and part of that includes form tackling. How do you fix this? Hopefully, for the young players this is something the Steelers’ coaching staff can coach out of them.

But when veterans like Mitchell and linebacker Lawrence Timmons are doing it, there is less you can do.

There is nothing complicated about proper tackling. Head up, use your arms and drive through the man’s chest. Stay square to the ball carrier, and secure the play.

Scheme Fit

As I tweeted out last week:

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At some point the Steelers and a big chunk of the fan base are going to need to embrace that the league has progressed beyond this 3-4.

— Curt Popejoy (@NFLdraftboard) September 12, 2014"

It’s not that the 3-4 defense cannot work, because it can. However, the incarnation of the 3-4 defense that defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau and the Steelers are trotting out every week is antiquated and not properly staffed. 

If the Steelers want to stick with the 3-4 (which I’m not sure they do), they are going to need to continue to turn over this roster. The Steelers do not have a pass-rushing outside linebacker currently on the roster that strikes fear in any offensive tackles in the league.

Pittsburgh is also still lacking at strength at the nose-tackle position. The combination of Cam Thomas and Steve McLendon has failed to anchor the middle of the defensive line. A 3-4 defense without a great nose tackle is no good to anyone.

Rob Carr/Getty Images

Additionally, speaking to the 3-4 defense, the philosophy is to be able to stop the run and defend the pass without resorting to as many sub packages as a more traditional 4-3 defense.

For Pittsburgh, running nearly 25 percent of snaps out of some incarnation of the nickel means that the front office is on notice when it comes to the draft and creation of this roster.

It’s important to note that in the Steelers’ first two games, they have allowed an average of 356 yards per game. When you look at the schedule, you can see there are far more explosive offenses coming, and so look for that 25 percent to go up significantly. 

The best way to rectify this situation at this point is through patience and evolution. Be patient with all the youngsters on this defense, and evolve to utilize them properly. The pass rush isn’t going to come from the edges. And the days of dropping the nose tackle into coverage aren’t taking anyone by surprise anymore.

Patrick Semansky/Associated Press

Teams are simply using quick drops paired with soft coverage and lax pass rush to pick this defense apart.

Unfortunately, there’s no quick fix, but perhaps as the season progresses the coaches will find ways to get quick pressure, perhaps up the middle to disrupt opposing quarterbacks.