How can the Steelers defense change course?

The Pittsburgh Steelers defense has historically been the identity of the franchise—a legacy built on hard-hitting stops and intimidating plays.

But after a late-season collapse in 2024 that saw the unit surrender 27 points per game over the final six weeks—and a playoff meltdown against Baltimore that exposed serious flaws—knew the status quo wasn’t cutting it. The front office made sweeping changes to shore up the defense for 2025, but two weeks into the season the Steelers rank near the bottom of every major defensive metric after giving up over 30 points to each of their opponents.

As of now, this means the Steelers defense is trending to be one of the worst in decades. In order to change their trajectory, here’s what has to happen.

Injured Players

The injury bug has bitten the Steelers badly to start the season. First round draft pick Derrick Harmon was hurt in the preseason and has been sidelined since. The Oregon product was picked to be a major upgrade along the defensive line, namely to stop opposing run games. His presence may or may not fix the problems, but it surely wouldn’t hurt to have him available.

Another major blow came with DeShon Elliott‘s injury in Week 1 against the Jets. Elliott played 41% of the game and was ruled out last Sunday. His return is considered week-to-week, and it couldn’t come any sooner for a player who was a major factor in 2024.

Other starters have been dinged throughout the start of the season, including Alex Highsmith and Joey Porter Jr. Highsmith was hurt throughout training camp and the preseason, then left Sunday’s game against Seattle after playing only 10 snaps.

Backups Play Up

We have already had to see a healthy rotation of backups play suitable time in the first two weeks due to the aforementioned injuries. The Steelers need their linebackers to step up, including Nick Herbig (who was injured and didn’t play in Week 1) and rookie Jack Sawyer. Both players made splash plays against the Seahawks: Herbig with an interception and Sawyer with a sack.

Daniel Ekuale also had good pressure in limited reps, but it’s rookie Yahya Black who could also become a force in the defensive interior as his experience grows.

Another area where the Steelers could look to beef up the defense is by giving veteran Cole Holcomb more playing time. Holcomb, who returns in 2025 after missing all of last season due to an injury sustained in November 2023, was a prized free agent signing when he joined the team. His ability to move sideline-to-sideline and make plays is crucial as he gets up to speed after time off. He could form a nice tandem with Patrick Queen and Payton Wilson, potentially featuring all three on the field at the same time when facing mobile quarterbacks.

Scheme Change

With the injuries to Elliott and Porter, newly acquired CB Jalen Ramsey has had to play all over the field. Getting those players back would certainly help position Ramsey in a role where secondary coach Gerald Alexander envisioned him. Having those players in the secondary back will allow Pittsburgh to press more in man coverage at the line of scrimmage, rather than fall back into zone coverage or play 5-10 yards off of the ball.

Cover 4 and other hybrid zone-man schemes are on the table. Pittsburgh ranked 4th in EPA/play when using Cover 4 last season—but deployed it just 31st-most in the league, according to DK Pittsburgh Sports.

The Steelers also play nickel, utilizing an additional defensive back over fielding a defensive lineman, in nearly 2/3 of their defensive plays. The traditional base 3-4 was effective in stopping the run against the Seahawks, but was seldom deployed due to having to cover an additional receiver on the field. Shifting Keeanu Benton to nose tackle appeared to be a more natural fit for the former second-round pick, who has otherwise struggled as a tackle akin to Cameron Heyward.

Some of these changes should also allow T.J. Watt to play freely. Watt has been criticized as of late for lack of making plays but has also been the focus of opposing offensive coordinators who send double and triple teams Watt’s direction to minimize his impact. With players who can play press coverage returning, quarterbacks won’t have the cushions of a zone and will be forced to hold the ball longer, allowing Watt – and others – the ability to get home.

Former Patriots

The Steelers have added former New England Patriots defenders in recent weeks, signing safety Jabrill Peppers for depth ahead of the Seahawks game, then adding former linebacker Ja’Whaun Bentley on Tuesday. Both were starters for defensive minded coaches Bill Belichick and Jerod Mayo, and bring experience to Pittsburgh.

Peppers is a hard-hitting safety who should be able to contribute in the run game. Bentley was a surprise release early in the season and is coming off of a torn pectoral muscle injury that cost him all but two games in 2024. Between a span of 2021 to 2023, he had 348 combined tackles and 8.5 sacks, along with four forced fumbles.

Pittsburgh will need to figure out a way to integrate these two leaders who are playmakers into their defense sooner rather than later.

Defensive Playcaller

Teryl Austin has been incredibly conservative in recent years compared with Keith Butler, as the former blitzes far less than the latter. However, sending only three or four rushers hasn’t yielded great results: the Steelers have gone from being one of the leading teams in sacks to the middle of the pack.

While injuries play in the back of the coaches’ minds due to playing off of the ball or in zone schemes, they have to find creative ways to get the quarterback. Otherwise, average passers around the league – much like Sam Darnold last Sunday – will be able to pick apart Pittsburgh’s defense with ease.

Austin sounds like a scapegoat, since Tomlin is often cited with having a heavy influence on the defense, but his previous stints in Detroit and Cincinnati were also poor, which may force the Steelers to make another uncharacteristic midseason change, as they previously did with offensive coordinator Matt Canada. Austin is on the hot seat, and he has little time to turn this unit around to prove otherwise.