After defeating the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday, the Pittsburgh Steelers are now 2-0. They head into their week three matchup at the Philadelphia Eagles. So far, the Steelers pass defense has performed well despite being thought of as the team’s biggest weakness. Veteran William Gay has led the way for the secondary with solid tackling. While no single member of the Steelers secondary has stood out more than the others, the team’s zone concept has allowed each one of them to make impacts.
Steelers Secondary Proving Doubters Wrong
Rookie cornerback Artie Burns has played well early on despite not receiving much playing time. Burns made a key play in the end zone against the Bengals last week preventing a touchdown. Ross Cockrell was lined up across from star wide receiver A.J. Green for most of the game and still played well. Green was held to only 38 yards on two receptions and the Bengals totaled only 188 passing yards as a team.
Going Against Carson Wentz
The Eagles host the Steelers this Sunday and the focus is rookie quarterback Carson Wentz. Wentz has performed well so far in his first two games, but he’s played sub-par teams in the Cleveland Browns and Chicago Bears. Wentz has been running a no-huddle offense the majority of the time and reading the defense before the snap. It’ll be interesting to see the rookie try to read the sophisticated coverage schemes of Keith Butler’s defense.
The Eagles averaged 225 passing yards in their first two games, while the Steelers passing defense averaged 347.5 yards. While 347 yards doesn’t seem like the secondary is getting the job done, it’s important to consider that the Steelers defense has allowed only 101 rushing yards through two games. Teams get fed up with trying to run the ball and just abandon it all together, putting added pressure on the secondary.
Defending as a Committee
Even with added pressure, the Steelers secondary has stepped up and delivered. Mike Mitchell has continued to be a defensive leader with his shattering big hits, while Robert Golden has filled in nicely at the strong safety position. By playing zone and defending receivers as a committee, rather than playing man-to-man defense like the Steelers have done in the past, it’s allowed the Steelers young secondary to play with more confidence and less responsibility. While the zone defense has lightened the load a bit for the Steelers young secondary, they’ve also done a good job covering receivers deep and breaking up passes whenever they do find themselves in single coverage.
Cockrell has been the most-improved player on the Steelers defense so far this season. Cockrell allowed a lot of receptions last year because of the large cushion the Steelers cornerbacks gave in man-to-man coverage, but in playing zone, it has allowed him to move around more and read the quarterback.
Eagles Receivers Problems with Dropped Passes
Gay and Cockrell will be matched up with Eagles receivers Jordan Matthews and Nelson Agholor on Sunday. While they’re both known for their speed, Matthews and Agholor are also becoming known for their dropped passes. Matthews has caught just 13 of 23 targets this year and Agholor has caught eight of 12. Even if the Eagles receivers are able to get into open space against the Steelers stingy defense, they’ll have to make sure they can catch the ball.
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