After practice wrapped up on Saturday in Latrobe, ESPN reported that the Pittsburgh Steelers were signing LB Kwon Alexander to a one-year deal, pending a physical. Alexander was a player that Pittsburgh previously expressed interest in earlier this offseason, having him in for a visit back in May, but he left town without a contract. Apparently, GM Omar Khan and the front office saw the need to further bolster their ILB room, signing Alexander, who is a seasoned veteran with plenty of starting experience.
The eight-year veteran has 590 combined tackles during stints with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, San Francisco 49ers, New Orleans Saints, and New York Jets. He also has eight career interceptions, 12.5 sacks, 49 tackles for losses, and 11 forced fumbles. He spent 2022 with the Jets with whom he started 12 games but played in all 17, finishing with 69 tackles, including six for a loss. He also added a pass deflection and a forced fumble.
So, what kind of player are the Steelers getting in Alexander? Let’s dive into the tape and find out.
The Film
When you turn on Alexander’s tape, the first thing that jumps off the screen is his play speed. Alexander plays with his hair on fire as a linebacker, flying to the football with impressive effort in pursuit. Here’s an example of Alexander’s closing speed against Pittsburgh last season, getting on his horse to chase down WR Gunner Olszewski on the jet sweep, blowing him up on the failing outside run.
As you can see from the clip above, Alexander is a big hitter who can lay the boom on opposing ball-carriers. His hit against the Giants went viral last season but check out this play that Alexander makes against the Patriots. He starts out at the top of your screen split out over the slot receiver but runs down the screen pass on the opposite side of the field. Covering ground quickly, he de-cleats the runner with a big collision.
Alexander has the speed and athleticism to run sideline to sideline against opposing offenses, but also the burst to trigger downhill quickly and effectively. This makes him an effective gap shooter as he will weave through the offense on his path to the football. Watch this tackle Alexander makes against the Vikings last season, running to his landmark as he runs through the block attempt to make the tackle.
While a smaller off-ball linebacker (6-foot-1, 227 pounds) Alexander has shown the willingness to take on and fight through blocks. He would much prefer to use his speed to make plays around blocks, but he has no issue getting into opposing blockers and fighting them for positioning. Here’s an example against the Patriots where Alexander takes on the tight end at the end of the line of scrimmage. Keeping his outside leg and arm free as he takes on the block to set the edge, he manages to get in on the tackle with a teammate coming from behind to clean it up.
Alexander can run with a full head of steam to the ball-carrier, but he also can do a good job of reading blocks and working laterally down the line of scrimmage to get into the right gap. Watch this play he makes against the Steelers. Alexander works down the line of scrimmage on the pitch to RB Najee Harris, working to get between the two blockers and make the tackle for a minimal gain.
While Alexander is a good athlete in terms of play speed, his mental processing can be delayed at times, leading to him getting covered up on blocks or giving extra separation in coverage. Here is a good example of that against Pittsburgh. Alexander hesitates after the snap, standing still after the snap, which gives TE Pat Freiermuth a chance to get to the second level and block him, keeping Alexander from getting in on the play.
You see those delayed instincts in coverage as well from Alexander, being a tad slow to cover the receiver’s break in man or zone coverage. Watch this play against New England and RB Rhamondre Stevenson chipping on the pass rusher before going into his route and running an out that Alexander sits on until Stevenson has a couple steps of separation on him. Alexander turns on the jets to track down Stevenson but is unable to make the tackle.
Here is a coverage bust from Alexander in the same game. He bites on the play-action fake to the running back but doesn’t account for TE Jonnu Smith, who runs down the field. Alexander has to get on his horse to catch up after Smith makes the easy catch, eventually catching him and bringing him down after making an explosive play.
Alexander has the speed and athleticism to run with backs and tight ends in coverage, but he needs to do a better job of staying sticky in coverage and not getting turned around like on this rep. Freiermuth sells the outside which Alexander bites on, then breaks back inside, giving QB Kenny Pickett and open target over the middle of the field. He completes the pass to while getting hit by DL Quinnen Williams.
Conclusion
Kwon Alexander is an experienced, athletic linebacker who plays the game with a sense of urgency and physicality. He is a throwback-type of player who wants to impose his will as a hitter, acting as an enforcer in the second level of the defense. While he does bring a fair amount of play speed and burst to Pittsburgh’s inside linebacker room, Alexander does need to clean up his coverage duties as he can be a tad late to react to underneath breaking routes as well as needing to stay stickier in man coverage.
Alexander should be considered the first man up in the inside linebacker rotation behind projected starters Cole Holcomb and Elandon Roberts. He should see a fair number of snaps in base and in sub-packages thanks to his athleticism, likely pulling Roberts off the field in certain situations. Should Alexander prove to be more capable in coverage, perhaps we could see his snaps increase and potentially start a few games during the regular season should he pick up the defense quickly. Either way, Alexander is a low risk/moderate reward signing for the Steelers, adding more speed, experience, and aggressiveness to their defense.
