No single unit can successfully carry an entire team on its own on a weekly basis in the NFL. Some teams may have a much better offense than defense, or vice versa, but there will be a time in almost every victory in which key plays must be made in every phase, including special teams.
It gets at the root of the concept of complementary football that Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin brings up so frequently. Does the defense do what the offense needs it to do? Does the special teams do what the defense needs it to do? Do they take advantage of the situations the other phases provide, or minimize their disadvantages?
Today we’ll look at three players for the Steelers, one for each phase, who may have to step up today against the San Francisco 49ers. They may not necessarily be the most obvious players, and certainly won’t be the only players who will be counted upon to do their job, but they are three players I believe could potentially be particularly important in this game.
Offense: T Dan Moore Jr.
The biggest reason is simple: Nick Bosa. While Bosa plays more on the defensive left side than the right more recently (which was the opposite at the start of his career), the 49ers like to move him around to put him in advantageous situations.
And my guess is they would love to test out Dan Moore Jr. I’m going to be completely honest with you, I don’t care that he has had just a couple practices all offseason. I no doubt in my mind he’s going to be effective, potentially a game-wrecker. And his numbers show he is actually a little more effective rushing off the offensive left side than the right.
Defense: FS Minkah Fitzpatrick
Not the most shocking choice in the world to highlight a first-team All-Pro free safety, but the Steelers are going to need Minkah to be Minkah today. And that means all over the field, in all situations. He needs to be the traffic cop directing everybody to the ball carrier against the 49ers’ YAC-based offense. He must be that sideline-to-sideline enforcer and the constant in a new-look secondary that will experience growing pains.
And he’s got a young quarterback on his hands to try to get the best of. I don’t think any one defender will be more responsible for defending Brock Purdy than Fitzpatrick. He needs to make the second-year man spend too much time thinking, and hopefully making a costly decision or two.
Special Teams: K Chris Boswell
Another unadventurous pick with this one, but I think points will come at a premium in this game. The 49ers had one of the highest-scoring offenses last season in the second half of the year after adding RB Christian McCaffrey, but this is one that could come down to taking advantage of field goal opportunities. And the 49ers are expected to have struggling, ailing rookie K Jake Moody. Boswell must be the advantage today. It’s not like the offense was good in the red zone last year.
