For just a handful of practices one day in a long training camp, the Pittsburgh Steelers teased their new pass-rush package. Harkening back to the Dick LeBeau days of the Amoeba front with just one down lineman, the Steelers found one way to get their top three outside linebackers on the field: T.J. Watt, Alex Highsmith, and Nick Herbig out there at the same time. What they evidently refer to as their “Bronco package.”
In Latrobe, they used it during a two-minute drill. Then they tucked it away for the rest of camp and the preseason. But Sunday against the Atlanta Falcons, they broke it back out. It was their primary dime package, a 1-4-6 grouping with Patrick Queen the other linebacker and Cory Trice Jr. coming on the field as the sixth defensive back. Quick film room on how it looked, worked, and its effectiveness.
Officially, the team used it eight times against Atlanta. Six of the eight came on third down, five of them coming when the Falcons needed six or more yards. Of the eight, one came on a spike while another was negated by a penalty.
So let’s take a look. Here’s the first example from early in the second quarter when Atlanta faced 3rd and 10. Just as they flashed in camp, the Steelers come out with Watt and Highsmith on the edges with Herbig aligned like a 3T to Watt’s side. Montravius Adams is in the opposite A-gap.
The rush wasn’t effective, though CB Donte Jackson broke up Kirk Cousins’ throw and the defense got off the field.
I charted all eight reps to see how often the line stunted and didn’t. The results were pretty even. On four snaps, there was some stunt or twist up front. Three times, there wasn’t. And the other was a spike on the next-to-last snap of the game.
Here’s an example of the team stunting.
The Steelers mixed up their rushes. Sometimes they aligned in a 2×2 balanced look with two rushers on both sides.
Sometimes it was a 3×1 look that’s become popular across the NFL.
Montravius Adams was the lone defensive lineman for seven of the eight snaps so it was clear the team created the package with him in mind. Probably because he’s a solid athlete who can stunt and contain and would likely have fresh legs as a backup rotational player not seeing a ton of snaps. For the snap he wasn’t out there, DL/OLB DeMarvin Leal filled in.
On seven of those snaps, Herbig aligned inside. On the other, Highsmith was the interior player with Herbig taking his ROLB spot.
How effective was it? The sample size is small, but the results were mixed. Two pressures off the eight reps, one of which was Watt’s negated sack. The one that stuck was the final play, Watt beating RT Kaleb McGary for the walk-off takedown of Cousins.
The stunts weren’t terribly effective, and the Falcons picked things up well. Herbig had some trouble along the interior against those bigger guys. Still, I like the idea and creativity behind it, finding ways to get your top rushers on the field. Over time, they’ll toy and refine the package and find out what works best.
Here’s a cut-up of some of these packages.
Using three outside linebackers isn’t brand new. Pittsburgh did it in Alex Highsmith’s rookie year with Bud Dupree and Watt. The Steelers did it again the following year with Melvin Ingram as the No. 3. But those came on earlier downs out of heavier personnel and often had one of those EDGE players standing up over the A-gap. This is different. It’s more pass rush focused and about speed and getting athletes out there. Playing their best people. We’ll see how it looks going forward.
