Last season, the Pittsburgh Steelers’ inside linebackers struggled, and one area in particular where they struggled was when it came to creating splash plays. The group didn’t have a single forced fumble or interception, but inside linebackers coach Aaron Curry, who joined the staff this offseason, said getting splash plays isn’t an emphasis. He said the biggest focus is making sure they stay inside the scheme and fulfill their responsibilities.
“I think they understand that the standard is they execute their job first. Splash plays come from great effort. They don’t come from playing outside the scheme. We got a group of guys that do their job at a high level with high effort and good things are happening for them,” Curry said via video posted to Steelers.com.
Pittsburgh’s current inside linebacker corps broke that trend in Week One when Cole Holcomb forced a fumble, something he also did in Week Two. There’s been a marked improvement in play from the unit all-around, with all of Holcomb, Elandon Roberts and Kwon Alexander stepping up to make plays.
Roberts has three tackles for a loss and has been a solid presence as a run defender, while Alexander has five tackles for a loss, including a sack. Holcomb has the two forced fumbles and has brought the ball carrier down behind the line of scrimmage three times while tying with Alexander to lead the unit with 34 tackles.
For the most part, they’ve done a good job not selling out to make a play, too, which is what Curry wants to see. Guys aren’t compromising their gap integrity to try and make a big play. They’ve come from guys just doing their job and doing what’s asked of them and then they can make a play.
It’s key for a defense to be cohesive and make sure everyone’s on the same page. We saw what happens when someone doesn’t do what they’re supposed to on a given play when CB Levi Wallace overpursued on RB Jerome Ford’s 69-yard run in Week Two. That’s what Curry is trying to avoid.
You can shoot yourself in the foot by trying to do too much just for the sake of generating splash, and the inside linebackers haven’t done that this year. It’s been a steady unit that’s been an upgrade over what the Steelers had at the position last year.
They now get a week off to rest, and this is a group that can continue to ascend as the season wears on. With a three-man rotation at the position, any one of Holcomb, Roberts or Alexander could make a big play at a given moment, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see a lot more of them come the rest of the season.
