The Pittsburgh Steelers pride themselves on historically having a suffocating defense. However, outside of OLB T.J. Watt, there was nothing suffocating about the defense’s performance in the 30-7 loss to the San Francisco 49ers this past Sunday.
One of the common themes for the Steelers defense after taking time to look over the game was communication, especially in the secondary. Defensive coordinator Teryl Austin spoke Thursday on the topic, according to a transcript provided by the team.
“When you make a communication error in the back end, it results in a big play,” Austin said. “We saw a few of those happen last week. So, I think it’s important that we do get that ironed out. That’s something that we’ve talked about from Day One. It’s always been an emphasis, whether you have a new group or an old group because when you get in the stadiums and you’re working in that back seven, any mistake cuts a guy free, and most times when guys get free in this league, they find the open guy. That was what happened last week. So we’ve got to do better at that.”
While no sane person would tell you that 49ers QB Brock Purdy is on the same level as the elite quarterbacks in the NFL, he was effective at finding those open players. He finished the afternoon with 19 completions on 29 attempts for 220 yards and two touchdowns. He also carried the ball three times for 20 yards.
Yet two San Francisco wide receivers recorded explosive plays on the afternoon. Deebo Samuel had five catches for 55 yards, and one of those covered 22 yards. WR Brandon Ayiuk was the biggest thorn in the secondary’s collective side with eight catches for 129 yards and two touchdowns. One of his catches covered 23 yards.
Then to further rub salt in the wound, RB Christian McCaffrey ripped off a 65-yard touchdown as part of his 22 carries for 152 yards on the afternoon. While the secondary cannot be held completely responsible for a rushing touchdown of that length, they are still part of the run defense.
In all, there were three explosive plays in which communication problems seem to have played a role, according to Austin. In order for the defense to get back to what it wants to be, those communication problems (among other problems) need to be ironed out as quickly as possible. Otherwise, QB Deshaun Watson and the rest of the Cleveland Browns offense will do everything in their power to take advantage on Monday night.
