The Pittsburgh Steelers put a big emphasis on overhauling their linebacker room this offseason, seeing Devin Bush, Myles Jack, Robert Spillane, and Marcus Allen walk out the door as they brought in Cole Holcomb, Elandon Roberts, and Kwon Alexander. While the names that the Steelers brought in has proven NFL resumes, they fail in comparison of some of the tandems that they have faced in their first six games of the season. They saw the dynamic duo of Fred Warner and Dre Greenlaw Week One against the 49ers and then got to face the Ravens’ tandem of Roquan Smith and Patrick Queen in Week Five.
Heading into their Week Seven matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Tomlin sees the duo coming to town from Duval on the same level as the tandems they have faced from San Francisco and Baltimore with veteran LB Foyesade Oluokun leading the way for the Jags’ defense.
“I think [James] Farrior is a really good example in comparison,” Tomlin said to Bob bob Pompeani on The Mike Tomlin Show which aired on the Steelers’ YouTube channel. “Farrior doesn’t get enough credit for his football intellect, man. His leadership skills, his communication, his intuition just born out of intelligence, and the same thing can be said about Oluokun man. I mean, he’s a Yale graduate, so we know he’s a sharp guy, but the fluidity in which he gets to the ball in all circumstances. His sideline to sideline tackling, his evolution in the group. A year ago, I think Josh Allen was their defensive captain. This year, he’s their defensive captain and I think that just speaks to where he is in the group.”
Oluokun has quietly become one of the best off-ball linebackers in all of football, starting out as a former sixth-round pick in the 2018 NFL Draft out of Yale by the Atlanta Falcons. He saw the field right away as a rookie, notching seven starts in 16 games and recorded 91 total tackles. he has since led the league in tackles twice, posting 192 total stops with the Falcons in 2021 and 184 total tackles last season in his first go-around with the Jags. Oluokun is a great athlete, having run a 4.48 40 with a 4.12 short shuttle and a 37-inch vertical during his Pro Day, having that athleticism pop on film as a run-and-chase linebacker that also excels in coverage. He has 81 total stops so far this season as well five pass deflections and an INT returned for a touchdown, being a three-down linebacker that can do it all for Jacksonville.
Oluokun makes up half of the Jacksonville duo as Tomlin also highlights former first-round pick Devin Lloyd as the other member that completes the formidable group in the middle for the Jags.
“And I think coupled with Devin Lloyd, man, they’re a formidable tandem,” Tomlin said. “They’ve invested in that tandem similarly to say San Fran with [Fred] Warner and [Dre] Greenlaw, or Baltimore or with [Roquan Smith] and [Patrick] Queen. This is a formidable tandem. They leave them on the field in almost all circumstances. They make a lot of plays, and so, they have our attention, certainly.”
Llyod is quite the player himself, being a former All-American coming out of Utah who was a tackling machine in college that made plays all over the field for the Utes. He’s taken that skill set to the league and has done the same in Jacksonville, posting 115 total tackles, eight pass deflections, and three interceptions as a rookie last season. He isn’t as great of an athlete on the stop watch as Oluokun is, but he plays well in space, reads well in his pursuit of the ball, and does a good job in coverage against backs, tight ends, and even slot receivers when asked to matchup on passing downs.
Oluokun and Lloyd made not garner the same national media hype and recognition from a Pro Bowl perspective as the other top linebacker tandems in the league, but their play on the field certainly warrants it. They are two playmakers in the middle of the Jaguars’ defense and deserve Pittsburgh’s attention as mentioned by Tomlin above. Look for the tandem to make their presence felt in coverage over the middle of the field, presenting QB Kenny Pickett challenges targeting his playmakers there. It terms of the running game, Pittsburgh must do a good job getting both guys covered up, preventing them to run freely in space and make plays on their backs to establish a presence on the ground.
