Pittsburgh Steelers defensive tackle Cameron Heyward. Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Cameron Heyward challenges Steelers defense to step up amid losing streak

By Zachary Cariola | Last updated Oct 31, 2025 9:53 AM ET

The Pittsburgh Steelers have taken a few steps back in the last couple of games, losing to the Cincinnati Bengals and Green Bay Packers. In both losses, the Steelers defense allowed 30-plus points and 924 total yards combined.

With the offense not really the problem, as quarterback Aaron Rodgers has shown he’s bounced back from his Achilles injury and poor season with the New York Jets, the defense has to do its part to help win some games when Rodgers and the offense put them in a position to do so.

DT Cameron Heyward challenges Steelers defense to do better

Still sitting atop the AFC North at 4-3, the Steelers' grip on the lead of the division is slowly slipping, especially after the Baltimore Ravens' commanding win over the Miami Dolphins on “Thursday Night Football.” After back-to-back losses and with a matchup looming against the best team in the AFC, and perhaps the NFL, in the Indianapolis Colts (7-1), Heyward is challenging himself and his fellow teammates on defense to “get better.”

“Anything I’d say to you, I’d say to them first,” Heyward said Thursday to Joe Rutter of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. “I just think we all have to get better. I challenge everybody, and I challenge myself first and foremost. That’s the way I was raised. You can’t look at anybody else. You have to look at yourself. The way to get this bad taste out of our mouth is to play better football.”

Cameron Heyward is not wrong in assessment of his play, Steelers defense

Heyward is not wrong that the Steelers need to turn things around on defense, as they have the third-worst overall defense (386 yards per game) and the worst passing defense (273.3 yards) in the league. Heyward, despite being the team's leader, has not done well himself, having just 1.5 sacks, 15 solo tackles, and 26 total tackles.

Facing the top-rated offense in the Colts (385.3 yards) thanks to the resurgence of quarterback Daniel Jones and running back Jonathan Taylor having an MVP-type season, the Steelers must prevent Taylor from running all over them and Jones from slinging the ball all around the field to get back into the win column and maintain their lead in the division.

To prevent Jones from doing that, the Steelers could allow cornerback Brandin Echols to play more snaps over veteran cornerback Darius Slay, who has not gotten the job done after signing him to be the counterpart to Jalen Ramsey.

Zachary Cariola

My name is Zachary Cariola and I have been a sports fan for as long as I can remember. My areas of expertise are MLB, NBA, and NFL. You can find my other work on Southside Showdown from FanSided and at Chicitysports where I cover all Chicago sports. When not watching sports, I love spending time with my family and learning history.

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