Old and slow — the words sting for Steelers fans because they’ve lived this before. Back in the early 2010s, as players like Troy Polamalu, Ike Taylor, James Harrison, and Casey Hampton aged out together, a once-dominant defense faded fast. The 2025 defense was supposed to be different, but the Bengals exposed it for what it is on Thursday Night Football.
“Is this defense good enough to contend and hang with good teams? My answer to that was I am very, very skeptical. I come outta this game thinking I don’t know about that. I’m actually pretty much like ‘No, it’s not good enough,'” Matt Harmon said via Yahoo Fantasy’s YouTube. “This is an old and slow defense. They’re old and slow in critical spots.”
He goes on to highlight several of the biggest names on Pittsburgh’s defense and their performances against the Bengals.
T.J. Watt had fewer tackles than DK Metcalf. Yes you read that right. Jalen Ramsey and Darius Slay were toasted by the Bengals’ receivers. Cam Heyward had the best night of the bunch, but still didn’t impact the game much. All four of them are over 30 years old, and clearly past their primes.
Harmon drilled in on Ramsey as the key defensive acquisition of the Steelers’ offseason.
“He has been getting fried in man coverage situations by all kinds of receivers. It’s not just speed guys,” Harmon said. “That has not been a great acquisition.”
Unfortunately, old and slow often carries a third tag with it – expensive. Veteran players with extensive resumes don’t come cheap. And that’s why the Steelers have both the oldest and most expensive defense in the NFL.
Watt, Heyward, and Ramsey are their three largest cap hits, and Slay is 10th. They combine to eat up $75.7 million of the Steelers’ 2025 salary cap space.
Mike Tomlin infamously said the defense was capable of historic things before the season began. He clearly had too much faith in what his players once were, and not what they are currently capable of at the tail ends of their careers.
Tomlin’s faith in the unit may have been part of their downfall last night. During his halftime sideline interview, Tomlin pointed to their desire to stop the run. While important, that meant Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins could eat in the passing game. And boy did they feast. Chase credited 1-on-1 coverage for his big game. That’s Tomlin having too much faith in guys like Ramsey and Slay in man coverage against the best receivers in the game.
“We’re stuck in the early 2000s. This is not how we’re playing defense in the NFL anymore,” Harmon said.
The players are old and slow, and the play callers are old and outdated.
Old. Slow. Overdue for change.
