Games are won and lost in the trenches in the NFL, and right now the work the Pittsburgh Steelers are doing in the trenches defensively is helping them win games.
Up front, the Steelers have a good mix of stars and key role players, making for a formidable wall. Names like stars T.J. Watt and Cameron Heyward, as well as key veterans in Alex Highsmith and Larry Ogunjobi, not to mention emerging rookie Keeanu Benton and solid depth piece Montravius Adams are playing some great football for the Steelers, helping them get to 5-3 on the season ahead of the midway point.
On paper, Pittsburgh is loaded along the defensive line. That includes the outside linebacker room because of the nature in which the edge defenders play in Pittsburgh. Knowing that, it’s not a surprise to see the Steelers’ defensive line so highly ranked Friday morning by the 33rd Team’s Maxx Forde, a former NFL and CFL defensive lineman himself.
In Forde’s defensive line rankings, Pittsburgh checks in at No. 4, behind only the Dallas Cowboys, Philadelphia Eagles and San Francisco 49ers, making the Steelers the best defensive line in the AFC.
“The Pittsburgh Steelers’ defensive line is one that you rarely see moving backward, works well off each other with movement, and does a good job of using their hands to get off of blocks and finish the play. They’ve been put behind the eight ball plenty of times, be it when their offense is stuck in the mud or when their secondary is a bit leaky, and through it, they play to their standard,” Forde writes in his rankings for the 33rd Team.
It’s not a defensive line that you see moving backwards much — if at all — yet it is still a defense that has struggled mightily to stop the run.
Entering Week 10 against the Green Bay Packers, the Steelers rank 31st in total yards per game allowed (377.3), 25th in passing yards allowed per game (244.1),29th in rushing yards allowed per game (133.1) and yet are 13th in points per game allowed (20.4).
Teams are having great success running the ball against the Steelers, but Pittsburgh is very much a bend-don’t-break defense right now. It helps that they get after the passer quite well with the terrific talent assembled up front. The Steelers are fifth in the NFL with 26 sacks on the season, led by Watt’s 9.5, which is tied for second in the NFL.
Now, with Heyward back in the lineup, that number should only increase as the Steelers can get after the passer in waves.
“While T.J. Watt has taken over the mantle of the best player along the Pittsburgh defensive line, the Steelers have done this without 13-year vet and multiple All-Pro Cameron Heyward, who returned to play just last week after missing the bulk of the season’s first half. As he ramps up, expect to see a unit that has put the team on its back and win games become true nightmare fuel for opposing quarterbacks and offensive coordinators alike,” Forde writes.
Nightmare fuel for opposing quarterbacks is a great way to describe the Steelers’ defensive line.
That’s what they’ve been so far this season, racking up 26 sacks and countless pressures. That should only increase with Heyward back in the lineup, opening things up more for guys like Watt, Highsmith and Ogunjobi to get after quarterbacks and make game-changing plays.
