hawaiiansteeler
08-02-2015, 03:29 PM
Front Seven Excited About Defensive Changes
Aug 02, 2015
Jim Wexell
Publisher SteelCityInsider.net
The Steelers have the pieces to make the Mike Tomlin/Keith Butler changes work.
LATROBE -- In one of the early camp practices, Ben Roethlisberger stepped up past some traffic, rolled right to avoid even more of it, and heaved a ball downfield to fullback Will Johnson, who was running a dig route.
Johnson thought for sure he was running under a touchdown pass as it spiraled down to earth, but a linebacker got a finger on it just in time to break up what should've been a 50-yard completion.
A linebacker?
"Yeah, Shazier," Johnson said of last year's first-round draft pick, Ryan Shazier.
That's not supposed to happen against linebackers, is it?
"No," Johnson said. "But Shazier, he's fast."
Johnson said Shazier's "about five yards" faster than the typical inside linebacker. "Yeah, he's pretty quick. Quick to burst," Johnson said. "He covers a lot of ground, believe it or not."
It was seen. And believed. That's the type of inside linebacker the Pittsburgh Steelers envisioned when they drafted Shazier in the first round last year.
If they considered Lawrence Timmons to be the next Derrick Brooks, when Mike Tomlin made Timmons his first ever draft pick in 2007, what did the Steelers consider Shazier?
"Rare air," Tomlin said on draft day.
Speed and rare speed. That's what the Steeler have inside this season, and that's part of the reason they'll be running more cover-2 looks this year.
Tomlin has stepped up daily to coach his secondary on the nuances of cover-2, and new defensive coordinator Keith Butler has confirmed with reporters that he plans to call "much more cover-2."
Under Dick LeBeau, the Steelers primarily used cover-3 with the large cushions on the edges to give them a three-deep look. However, that was a departure from the 1970s when Chuck Noll and Bud Carson preached cover-2 and Tony Dungy soaked it up,
added his special touches and re-emerged with the "Tampa 2" that Tomlin learned so well on the way to a 2002 championship.
The defense has come full circle back to Pittsburgh, and like Jack Lambert before them, Shazier and Timmons are key to the coverage because of their ability to drop deep to make up for the fact the Steelers have two deep safeties instead of three.
Once the coaching staff feels comfortable that this Steelers secondary understands the nuances, they'll use more cover-2, but with an odd front. And that will allow both Shazier and Timmons to use their speed in coverage down the middle.
"I'll go back, sometimes Lawrence goes back," Shazier said. "It just depends on how the coaches feel, what they want to call."
There will be a difference in the style of play up front as well. But it has nothing to do with alignment, but instead about philosophy. Instead of two-gapping and reading to react, the front will penetrate and disrupt.
"We're learning like a whole different scheme," said second-year defensive lineman Stephon Tuitt. "We'll still control our gap and we still want our linebackers free to be able to make plays, but the defensive line is being taught to play that 3-technique and be dominant."
Three-technique defensive tackles penetrate and, theoretically, dominate. Those are the kinds of players the Steelers have up front in Tuitt and Cameron Heyward, so an alteration in style only makes sense.
"It's hybrids," said Heyward. "That's what I love about Coach Butts; he's open to anything."
As former Steelers safety Ryan Clark pointed out a day after sitting in a team meeting, the Steelers didn't sign Heyward to a $59.3 million contract extension to take on blockers and free up linebackers. These front seven players will be penetrating more this season.
to read rest of article:
http://www.scout.com/nfl/steelers/story/1569342-front-seven-excited-about-defensive-changes
Aug 02, 2015
Jim Wexell
Publisher SteelCityInsider.net
The Steelers have the pieces to make the Mike Tomlin/Keith Butler changes work.
LATROBE -- In one of the early camp practices, Ben Roethlisberger stepped up past some traffic, rolled right to avoid even more of it, and heaved a ball downfield to fullback Will Johnson, who was running a dig route.
Johnson thought for sure he was running under a touchdown pass as it spiraled down to earth, but a linebacker got a finger on it just in time to break up what should've been a 50-yard completion.
A linebacker?
"Yeah, Shazier," Johnson said of last year's first-round draft pick, Ryan Shazier.
That's not supposed to happen against linebackers, is it?
"No," Johnson said. "But Shazier, he's fast."
Johnson said Shazier's "about five yards" faster than the typical inside linebacker. "Yeah, he's pretty quick. Quick to burst," Johnson said. "He covers a lot of ground, believe it or not."
It was seen. And believed. That's the type of inside linebacker the Pittsburgh Steelers envisioned when they drafted Shazier in the first round last year.
If they considered Lawrence Timmons to be the next Derrick Brooks, when Mike Tomlin made Timmons his first ever draft pick in 2007, what did the Steelers consider Shazier?
"Rare air," Tomlin said on draft day.
Speed and rare speed. That's what the Steeler have inside this season, and that's part of the reason they'll be running more cover-2 looks this year.
Tomlin has stepped up daily to coach his secondary on the nuances of cover-2, and new defensive coordinator Keith Butler has confirmed with reporters that he plans to call "much more cover-2."
Under Dick LeBeau, the Steelers primarily used cover-3 with the large cushions on the edges to give them a three-deep look. However, that was a departure from the 1970s when Chuck Noll and Bud Carson preached cover-2 and Tony Dungy soaked it up,
added his special touches and re-emerged with the "Tampa 2" that Tomlin learned so well on the way to a 2002 championship.
The defense has come full circle back to Pittsburgh, and like Jack Lambert before them, Shazier and Timmons are key to the coverage because of their ability to drop deep to make up for the fact the Steelers have two deep safeties instead of three.
Once the coaching staff feels comfortable that this Steelers secondary understands the nuances, they'll use more cover-2, but with an odd front. And that will allow both Shazier and Timmons to use their speed in coverage down the middle.
"I'll go back, sometimes Lawrence goes back," Shazier said. "It just depends on how the coaches feel, what they want to call."
There will be a difference in the style of play up front as well. But it has nothing to do with alignment, but instead about philosophy. Instead of two-gapping and reading to react, the front will penetrate and disrupt.
"We're learning like a whole different scheme," said second-year defensive lineman Stephon Tuitt. "We'll still control our gap and we still want our linebackers free to be able to make plays, but the defensive line is being taught to play that 3-technique and be dominant."
Three-technique defensive tackles penetrate and, theoretically, dominate. Those are the kinds of players the Steelers have up front in Tuitt and Cameron Heyward, so an alteration in style only makes sense.
"It's hybrids," said Heyward. "That's what I love about Coach Butts; he's open to anything."
As former Steelers safety Ryan Clark pointed out a day after sitting in a team meeting, the Steelers didn't sign Heyward to a $59.3 million contract extension to take on blockers and free up linebackers. These front seven players will be penetrating more this season.
to read rest of article:
http://www.scout.com/nfl/steelers/story/1569342-front-seven-excited-about-defensive-changes