The Pittsburgh Steelers organization has always been known for their consistency. Whether it is only having three head coaches since 1969, to sticking to their philosophy of how they draft and approach free agency – the Steelers have been the model of said consistency since the late-70s.
Another thing you can always count on from the Steelers is a good strong defense. Ever since the Steel Curtain days you can always expect the Steelers to have a tough, physical defense.
But even the most consistent of organizations have to go through a ‘transition’ period. It isn’t quite a rebuild. A rebuild involves drafting at the top of the draft for a few years, which the Steelers haven’t done. They instead have entered a ‘retooling’ stage in which they have mixed a healthy blend of youth and experience.
Even in their brief ‘retool’ their will remain some consistency and that will be Troy Polamalu, the team’s long time starter at safety. Despite the potential of having to break in up to six new starters on a defense that had one of its worst statistical season in years, having Polamalu manning the back will help ease the transition.
Plagued by injuries in recent years, Polamalu played in all 16-games for just the second time in the last five seasons and it showed in the stat column.
The 33-year old California born safety forced a career high five fumbles last season, recorded two sacks, intercepted two passes, and scored his third career regular season defensive touchdown, showing the old form that made him one of the best defensive players in the leagues this past decade.
Breaking in a mostly new defense, however, will require Polamalu to also take on the role of teacher to go along his long standing role of playmaker.
It only takes listening to one of his interviews to see just quiet, and soft spoken he is. He may be one of the better examples of letting his play do the talking in the league. But with so many new faces taking over the starting defense they will rely on the veteran strong safety to help them adjust to the Steelers defensive scheme.
The addition of Mike Mitchell will help Polamalu transfer roles, as he brings the same playmaking ability to the table at the other safety spot. He will no longer be forced to play in the box so much as he did last year when stopping the run was such an issue.
With Mitchell’s versatility, Polamalu will be able to play back and allow his instincts to drive his play, and possible prolong his career. It will allow the younger players to make mistakes because they know that if they do, they have their safety net behind them to cover them.
It may not bring immediate results, but the long term effects on allowing players to play right away and not overstress themselves about making too many mistakes will pay off even after Troy is long and gone and the young players now are the grizzled veterans teaching a new wave of young players.
For more on sports injuries, check out our friends at Sports Injury Alert.
Thank you for reading. Please take a moment to follow me on twitter @AMurphyTRT. Support LWOS by following us on Twitter – @LastWordOnSport – and “liking” our Facebook page.
Football fans…check out our two partnered NFL podcasts – Thursday Night Tailgate Radio and Overtime Ireland. Both shows bring you interesting commentary, critical analysis and fantastic guests including former and current NFL players, coaches and personalities.
Main Photo:
