Since losing ILB Ryan Shazier to a career-ending injury in 2017, the Pittsburgh Steelers have been trying to find his long-term replacement, searching for remedies at off-ball linebacker via free agency, trades, and the NFL draft. Sadly, none of their efforts have proven fruitful as names including Devin Bush, Joe Schobert, Avery Williamson, Myles Jack, Robert Spillane, Jon Bostic, and more have come and gone without leaving much of an impact during their tenures in Pittsburgh.
This offseason, Pittsburgh overhauled the room completely, jettisoning all the guys off last year’s roster outside of Mark Robinso. The Steelers signed Cole Holcomb, Elandon Roberts, and Kwon Alexander in attempt to improve a room that lacked physicality and aggressiveness a season ago. Thus far, Pittsburgh’s additions at inside linebacker have done just that, giving a mean streak back to the room that Pittsburgh sorely lacked for some time, which continued to be on display last Sunday against the Jaguars.
The Film
When you go back through the tape, you see all three veteran linebackers make plays for Pittsburgh against Jacksonville in a losing effort. Roberts came up big in his own right, racking up five combined tackles, a tackle for loss, and 1.5 sacks on QB Trevor Lawrence. Watch the two play below where Roberts gets home on the rush, the first play showing him working through the outside shoulder of RB Travis Etienne attempting to pass protect as Roberts blows right past him to get the sack. On the second play, we see Roberts quick sidestep to the right to check and see if Etienne is running a screen, then his the throttle down and flies into the pocket to sack Lawrence with the rest of the defense rallying to the scene to pile up on the quarterback.
Holcomb and Alexander teamed up on one splash play for Pittsburgh’s defense with Alexander forcing a fumble and Holcomb recovering it for the turnover. Watch as Alexander flies in and puts his helmet on the ball, knocking it free out of TE Evan Engram’s grasp. The ball bounces around and Holcomb swoops in to take it away from RT Anton Harrison, who tries to fall on the loose ball.
Watching Holcomb on tape, you see the three-down, sideline-to-sideline linebacker that Pittsburgh has lacked for some time. He is constantly around the football and shows great effort in pursuit as a run defender as well as pursuing the ball after the catch. Check out this rep on a pass in the flat to Engram where S Keanu Neal is the first man on the scene, but Holcomb flies in to clean up on the play, getting Engram to the ground.
One thing that sets Holcomb apart from guys like Bush and Jack, who also had athleticism, is Holcomb’s ability to work through blocks as a run defender. Pittsburgh’s linebackers in the past struggled playing through contact whereas Holcomb invites it, stacking and shedding blocks while also showing great effort to work through blocks on his path to the ball. Watch these two reps below. Holcomb fights through the block to make the tackle with the first coming against Engram and the second coming against TE Luke Farrell. Holcomb shows on both occasions a willingness to take on contact and muscle his way around or through the block to make the stop on the ball carrier close to the line of scrimmage.
Conclusion
While the Steelers may have lost Sunday, their linebackers played well throughout the contest, doing a good job of swarming to the ball and holding Etienne to 79 yards on 24 carries (3.29 YPC). They managed to provide some notable splash (regardless of what Mike Tomlin thought) in the contest, racking up a couple of sacks and a forced fumble, which the defense recovered. It was an all-around strong performance for Holcomb, Roberts, and Alexander, who have become a stout trio in Pittsburgh.
The Steelers will rely on their inside linebackers in a big way this Thursday night against the Tennessee Titans, being that they should see a heavy dose of RB Derrick Henry, who is the engine of the Titans’ offense. DC Teryl Austin has mentioned that Roberts is the ideal guy for an old-fashioned slugfest that Pittsburgh expects to see tomorrow night, but Alexander and Holcomb will also be needed for their speed and playmaking, seeing as QB Will Levis is an athletic quarterback who can beat you with his arm and his legs. If the Steelers want to come out of Thursday’s matchup with a win, they likely will need a similar performance from this unit to what they put on display just a few days prior to keep Pittsburgh alive in the AFC North hunt.
