A good scheme and some superstar players can help cover up a weak link on defense, but it’s only a matter of time before a talented offensive coordinator finds a way to exploit that weakness. Once December and January football come around, the defense is only as good as its weakest link. The Pittsburgh Steelers found that out last season when they got run all over by the Baltimore Ravens.
The next seven months were spent looking for ways to strengthen the weak links on their defense. The Steelers brought in starters like Darius Slay, Jalen Ramsey, Juan Thornhill and Derrick Harmon. And role players like Malik Harrison, Chuck Clark, Brandin Echols, Daniel Ekuale, and Yahya Black. All with the hope that there would be no weak link.
“There’s some personnel changes. There’s also some schematic changes that you’re gonna see. Some different coverages you wouldn’t necessarily expect out of the Steelers,” The Athletic’s Mike DeFabo said via The Bettor Angle on BetMGM Network. “I think this defense, you look at it, there’s not really a weak link. If there’s a weak link, it’s Juan Thornhill at free safety. And I know Cleveland Browns fans, they were critical of him saying he was invisible after getting I think $11 million guaranteed a couple years ago. If he’s invisible on this defense, it means he’s probably doing his job and that this defense is pretty effective.”
Trading Minkah Fitzpatrick has the potential to be a bigger deal than we are making it, but Thornhill won’t be on the field every down. Ramsey is going to be used at safety in some of the base-defense packages and the Steelers have other personnel they can rotate through. Thornhill said he was brought in to take away the deep ball. If he can do that effectively, the Steelers should be just fine.
They have even insulated themselves from injuries at almost every position. No injury is ideal, but the defense is deep everywhere. The defensive line is the most susceptible to running into depth issues, but Black and Ekuale are both solid, versatile pieces.
And some of the pieces they had in place last year should only be stronger. Patrick Queen and DeShon Elliott with another year in the system and Payton Wilson ready to make a sizable Year-2 jump.
If the Steelers are only as good as their weakest link, they should be in much better shape than last season with rookie UDFA Beanie Bishop Jr., Cameron Sutton, and Larry Ogunjobi dragging them down. They are poised to turn their flashes of brilliance last year into sustained success.
