As reported by Mark Kaboly of The Athletic, we learned on Sunday evening that Pittsburgh Steelers S Minkah Fitzpatrick played an integral role in getting the final defensive play of the game called. He and defensive backs coach Grady Brown approached defensive coordinator Teryl Austin about the defense he had set up to defend the deciding play, up four with three seconds to play, defending their own red zone.
Ultimately, the Steelers called a timeout, and when the broadcast came back from break, the coverage scheme had changed suddenly. We got a glimpse of Fitzpatrick having an exchange with Austin, but it wasn’t until later that we knew exactly what transpired.
Yet Austin has gotten too much grief for this. If anything, he should be applauded for his open-mindedness, a principle of head coach Mike Tomlin’s philosophy. Among the many aphorisms he is known for is the adage that the Steelers do not care where good ideas come from. Whether it’s an assistant coach or even a player, everyone has a voice if that voice says something worth listening to.
Austin had the defense set up to play man coverage against the Green Bay Packers from the 16-yard line. It quite possibly would have been equally successful had they run the play with that coverage scheme. Fitzpatrick and Brown convinced Austin to shift to a zone coverage scheme protecting the goal line, and it resulted in S Damontae Kazee intercepting the pass on the final play of the game.
But so much of the success of that play was rooted in the Steelers being able to generate four-man pressure, with particular credit to DL Cameron Heyward getting push deep into the pocket. Packers QB Jordan Love was going to be rushed on his throw regardless of what the coverage was.
That’s not to say that it wasn’t wise to switch the play. But it was Austin’s decision to do so. He could have stuck with what he called. Instead, he decided to listen to his assistant coach and quite like the most astute player he’s ever had the pleasure of coaching, one who called upon his own film study and playing history.
A good leader knows when to listen. Austin’s defenses are surely not without fault. The Steelers rank 28th in the league in yards allowed per game. They are giving up the sixth-most yards per play. They are committing the 11th-most penalties.
Yet they rank 12th in points per game, first in takeaways per game, and ninth in expected points added, so it can’t be all bad. Having played without Heyward for most of the season hasn’t helped matters, quite frankly, nor was the loss of half of the starting secondary this offseason.
We’ll never know how the play would have turned out had the Steelers run it as Austin called it before taking a timeout. But it doesn’t matter. He ultimately got his unit into what he felt was the best play for the situation in the long run, because he was willing to be receptive to the experiences of others. And that’s a credit to him, not a knock. Yes, it’s fun to joke about how even the coaches are being outcoached by their players, and I understand much of that was in jest (it is pretty funny). But he did the right thing.
