Injured in Week One with a groin injury, Cam Heyward didn’t return to the field until Week Nine against the Tennessee Titans. For the Pittsburgh Steelers, it wasn’t a moment too soon.
Losing Heyward, the anchor the defensive line, was an obvious problem. Pittsburgh’s not the same without its stars. Without T.J. Watt, the Steelers’ pass rush goes into a complete shell. Without Heyward, their run defense tanks. And hey, they’re stars, they’re All-Pros, you expect dramatic fall off. But it doesn’t make it any easier watching teams run at will on a franchise known for steady run defense over the last 50 years.
Without Heyward, the Steelers’ run defense was trending to becoming one of the worst in football, following a similar pattern in 2021 when Heyward was healthy but the rest of line was not, leading to one of their worst statistical seasons ever.
Though he wasn’t, and probably still isn’t 100 percent, Heyward got back for the team’s Week Nine Thursday night game against the Tennessee Titans. He and the rest of the defense held Derrick Henry to 75 yards on 17 carries, a solid outing but nothing dominant that won the Titans the game. Pittsburgh held on for the victory, a bounce-back win on a short week after falling to the Jacksonville Jaguars four days earlier.
The Green Bay Packers brought a dual threat of Aaron Jones and AJ Dillon out of the backfield. Both were contained, Dillon only breaking off one long run, while Jones was held to 35 yards on 13 carries. The Cleveland Browns leaned on their running game even more than the Week Two matchup, forced to start rookie QB Dorian Thompson-Robinson in replacing the injured Deshaun Watson. While RB Nick Chubb was also lost for the season, the Browns still had talent and an identity. But Pittsburgh won up front as RBs Kareem Hunt and Jerome Ford combined to average 2.8 yards per tote.
Pittsburgh’s run defense was at its finest in Sunday’s win over the Cincinnati Bengals. Also turning to a backup quarterback in Jake Browning for the injured Joe Burrow, the Bengals knew they had to run the ball. The Steelers didn’t let them. RB Joe Mixon had eight carries for 16 yards and a long of four as the Bengals were held to just 25 yards on the day, their lowest output ever against the Steelers. It put the game in Browning’s hands, and he couldn’t make enough plays as the Steelers won.
In total, look at the difference in rush yards allowed and yards per carry given up without Heyward (it does count Week One but Heyward was hardly healthy for it) versus since he’s returned. They tell the story.
Steelers Run Defense (Weeks 1-8)
Rushing Yards – 960 (23rd)
Yards Per Carry – 4.5 (27th)
Steelers Run Defense (Weeks 9-12)
Rushing Yards – 342 (8th)
Yards Per Carry – 3.8 (7th)
Without him, a bottom-third run defense. With him, a top-10 unit. Heyward isn’t running and moving like usual, the effort is there but he jogs like there’s a board between his legs. But he still holds the point of attack as well as any interior defender in football. And when he’s on the field, you feel his presence. The Steelers’ defense does and the opposing offense sure does, too. Pittsburgh’s back to winning the line of scrimmage with No. 97 in the lineup, and it’s exactly what the Steelers needed.
