Defense looking good against a bona fide

[SanAntonioSteelerFan]

Yup, looks like we might have a defense that doesn't suck, maybe, dare I say it, they could be called pretty good!

And against a SB-winning QB, with bona fides.

Yeah, baby!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zFQ54sZjnCQ

[BradshawsHairdresser]

They have to be building some confidence through these good performances. Rounding into form at the right time.

[pittpete]

They did well today.

[SteelCrazy]

I'm not sure the Giants are bona fide on offense. I'm pretty sure they've struggled all year, but I am thrilled with our D. Just a few weeks back, Carson Wentz was considered a first ballot HOF because of our Ds lack of pressure and stopping power. Now we are on a 3 game win streAk that's not possible without our defense. Well, maybe possible against the Browns.

[phillyesq]

The D got good pressure and, once again, came up big in the clutch. OBJ ended the game with 10 catches for 100 yards, and while that fills up the stat sheet, he was held in check and didn't really impact the game.

One point that I've seen a few others point out - the defense practices 7 shots at the goal line extensively in training camp and during the season. So Tomlin and the coaching staff absolutely deserves some credit for the success of the D in those clutch situations.

[papillon]

The question now is can the defense string together another good performance against a quarterback that certainly isn't as talented as Eli. These are the games that have been the Achilles heel for this team over the past few years, they seem to rise to the occasion for the good teams and play good game regardless of the outcome then they play a team with an average to below average record and struggle.

The Steelers should, I repeat should, gain a game in the standings after the upcoming week, provided the Patriots do what the Patriots do and the Steelers can win a game in Buffalo. The Buffalo offense consists of Shady McCoy; the defense should take him out of the game and force Tyrod Taylor and Watkins to beat them, period. This is what the Patriots do, take away your best player and see if the others are up to the task.

Pappy

[feltdizz]

Bills game scares me.. Tyrod is the type of QB who hurts the Steelers by extending plays and throwing deep.

Should be an entertaining game.

[BowCatShot]

Suddenly, the defense wasn't giving up those 10 yard cushions on the receivers. Why was that? Now let's see if they revert back to doing so.

[SteelerOfDeVille]

i found myself wondering if Dupree will ever develop a move other than a speed rush around the edge, which allows the tackle to push him upfield. he's gotta get a counter or two... I see OLB-ILB both being selected REALLY early this draft.

OTOH, excited about the young DBs.

Depending on what happens with Timmons and contract, don't be surprised to see this draft look like the Timmons/Woodley draft a decade ago... that worked out pretty good.

[Oviedo]

The defense has gotten better since Burns and Davis have been inserted into the starting line up and J Jones was removed from it. The young DBs are definitely looking good, not perfect but lots to like. Amazing how athletic young rookies can contribute. Hopefully Dupree gets up to game speed for the play off push....that would be a major help.

[feltdizz]

The defense has gotten better since Burns and Davis have been inserted into the starting line up and J Jones was removed from it. The young DBs are definitely looking good, not perfect but lots to like. Amazing how athletic young rookies can contribute. Hopefully Dupree gets up to game speed for the play off push....that would be a major help.

Hargrave as well, hopefully he is back for Buffalo

[pittpete]

Mitchell and Davis are definitely gelling. I've been pretty critical about Mitchell's play but maybe his play has improved as of late because Davis is getting it.

[RuthlessBurgher]

Steelers winning with defense, not in spite of it

By Chris Bradford

6 hrs ago

PITTSBURGH -- It seemed an appropriate question just 21 days ago.

Had the Steelers just intentionally let Ezekiel Elliott waltz into the end zone, untouched, with 1:56 remaining in their Week 10 loss against Dallas?

Strategically, it would have made sense for the Steelers to try to get the ball back into the hands of their offense as soon as possible, anything to get their hemorrhaging defense off the field. However, the anguished reactions of the Steelers defenders told the story. The Steelers couldn't stop Elliott.


In fact, they hadn't been able to stop much of anything during their four-game losing streak.

Suddenly, those 21 days are starting to seem like a long, long time ago.

Since that game, when the Cowboys scored twice in the final two minutes, the Steelers defense has given up just four touchdowns over their last three games, all of which they've won.

During the four-game skid, the Steelers were giving up 28.25 points and 134.75 rushing yards per game. Compare that to their current three-game winning streak, where they're giving up just 10.0 points and 60 rushing yards per game.

Sure, the Steelers preyed upon weak opponents in Cleveland and Indianapolis, but that wouldn't explain Sunday's win over the New York Giants.

Not only did the Steelers bring an end to New York's six-game winning streak, they effectively shut down the Giants' plethora of offensive playmakers.

The key, the Steelers say, was really quite simple.

Without the threat of a running game, Eli Manning was forced to throw, which allowed the Steelers to make life miserable on the Giants QB, who had no time or room to make any throws. Manning was sacked and intercepted two times each.

"Today was your classic case of rush and coverage working together like (coach Mike Tomlin) always says," cornerback Ross Cockrell said. "I think on some of those throws Eli was running from people on the inside and he was just throwing something up and we were able to capitalize on those."

The Steelers' much-maligned pass rush, which had ranked at the bottom of the NFL in sacks, now has 18 in the past five games to rank 14th with 26 total.


"The No. 1 thing is you want to stop the run," said James Harrison, who recorded his team-high fifth sack Sunday. "Once you stop the run, you pressure the quarterback. If they’re running the ball and passing the ball well, you can’t sit there and try and pin your ears back, so to speak, on the pass and you can’t sit there and try and play the run. Then, they'll play action you. You can’t have a team that’s doing both things well. You have to go in and, first and foremost, shut down the run. After that you want to pressure the quarterback."

The Steelers have also forced six turnovers in the last three games and no one is seriously questioning whether the Steelers are letting opponents score. They have bent, but they haven't broken often. The Steelers boast the NFL's top-ranked unit in the red zone at 42.5 percent. Both turnovers against the Giants were interceptions -- Lawrence Timmons and Sean Davis -- inside their own 20.

The credit for the turnaround belongs to defensive coordinator Keith Butler, says Timmons. Butler has had to make the necessary adjustments, such as promoting Harrison to the first team, while incorporating a trio of rookies -- Davis, cornerback Artie Burns and defensive end Javon Hargrave -- to the starting lineup. Oh, and he's had to do all that without the services of star defensive end Cam Heyward, who is out for the season with a pectoral injury.

"Coach Butler made the calls, he just knows what he’s doing," said Timmons, the longest-tenured player on the Steelers defense. "He knows what the offense is doing out there. And it puts us in great position out there."

While the defense still has its flaws and tougher tests await in the playoffs, should they make it, the Steelers feel their defense is headed in the right direction.

"I think we're still a work in progress," Cockrell said. "We still miss Cam Heyward. We've got young guys, two rookies on the back end playing for us. We're still a work in progress. It's a long season. We've got the last stretch and then the playoffs. So we're in this thing."

And to the surprise of many, the Steelers are in the playoff hunt because of the defense, not in spite of it. Twenty-one days ago, the Steelers could not have said that.

http://www.timesonline.com/sports/steelers/steelers-winning-with-defense-not-in-spite-of-it/article_960fc9fc-bb27-11e6-9b70-2f7bf46e3137.html

[BradshawsHairdresser]

Hargrave as well, hopefully he is back for Buffalo

He likely WON'T be, given that he is in concussion protocol. Even if he were to be cleared by game time, the protocol is keeping him off the practice field ... and as a rookie, he needs that practice to be ready to play. Hargrave's absence could be a big problem, since we'd be down two of our starters on the DL vs. the top-ranked running attack in the league.

Might be time for Big Dan to step up and prove his worth.

[Slapstick]

Two of our defenders, James Harrison and Sean Davis, were PFF's highest ranked players at their respective positions last week...

Take from that what you will...