Pass Rush Question for the Group

[Mojouw]

So I'm wondering where the pass rush went?

This team has led the league in sacks and pressure rate since like forever. I realize Watt is a massive loss and negatively impacts every single thing the defense wants to do.

But....is it just me or does there seem to be no pass rush "scheme" besides each of the front 3 attempt to beat the OL in front of them and an occasional Maulet blitz from the slot corner spot?

I was never the biggest Butler cheerleader, but he seemingly could weave pass rush out of nothing at times. Where are the A-gap blitzes from the ILB (the ones that made VW look like a pass rusher!)? Has anyone seen a stunt or a switch along the front 4 to try and free a rusher up?

Again....I can no longer watch these things as closely as I could a few years ago....but am I just not seeing what is there or has the "creativity" (maybe the wrong word here) or ability to get an "easy" sack for a guy just kind of evaporated?

This post totally acknowledges that I can just not be seeing things on game-days and what I am trying to describe is there and guys like Reed, Jones, Bush, Jack, and whoever are just not good enough.

[tube517]

Devin Bush looked like a kindergarten rusher out there when he completely whiffed.

Other than that, Leal is playing OLB. Where has Loudermilk been?

Larry O got hurt early. That leaves not much as the depth sucks.

They have their PS OLB in there rotating with the invisible Reed and Jones.

[Rotorhead]

Not something we saw this game, but in the previous 2 games I did see some stunts along the DL to free up Cam, Leal and Og. I think the Bills OL is just very good honestly, and without Watt they can focus on Highsmith and Heyward, then after losing Og’s we were not able to get any pressure at all.

[NCSteeler]

I didn't see the Bills game but I have noticed the rush basically either the front gets home and that's it.

I think at times they are so scared of the run , that they won't call an inside blitz.

At the end of the day Jack is pretty good, but we could get him for a reason and Bush is still the same guy.

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[86WARD]

I feel like this was addressed by a player in a media interview yesterday but cannot remember who addressed it.

[pczach]

I think right now there are so many injuries and so many substandard and inexperienced players, that they have had to keep things vanilla so there aren't as many blown assignments.

It's hard to imagine it could be much worse, but I'm assuming that is the current thinking.

They didn't have Minkah as the high safety on that first drive when they connected on the 98 yard dagger to the heart. Norwood completely messed up his angles and depth...and that's all she wrote. The kept blitzing, but I didn't see real exotic looks with great disguise.

Maybe it just looked so bad that I got numb and stopped paying good enough attention.

[Crow-Magnon]

Losing Watt is a helluva lot more than just losing Watt. He’s a catalyst. He’s a primary focus of the OL, TE’s and blockers in the backfield. The QB keeps a eye on him at all times. That creates openings and gaps for other rushers. You take TJ out of the line-up and you make much more of an impact that the loss of just one pass rusher.

[DuckHodges]

losing tuitt, and cam getting old means Watt is the only legitimate pass rusher on the team. Without him = no pass rush. Highsmith is basically Dupree 2.0 which means he's not gonna make plays without someone else attracting attention.,

[NCSteeler]

https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cji5K_mJ38v/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

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[DuckHodges]

https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cji5K_mJ38v/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=

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to be fair if that was any QB but josh allen or lamar jackson, that's a sack. Dude forgot the other QB was a fast QB and he overpursued

[steelreserve]

Our pass rush is Watt and a bunch of dongs.

No Watt, no dongs. Simple as that.

[Mojouw]

They have had dongs before and made chicken salad out of chicken crap.

I remember early in Dupree's career after tiring of seeing tackles just run him up around the pocket, they used to loop/twist Heyward and Dupree. The OT would have to pick-up Heyward and then Dupree could cut across the guard's face while he tried to reset to meet him. Manufactured a number of pressures and sacks.

Or that weird delay inside pressure that Butler was obsessed with. Waited to trigger the LB or the safety until the rest of the blockers committed and then one of them would wander between the C and the G unblocked while the RB or TE blocked ghosts on the other side of the formation.

Tomlin, Austin, and Flores all know their way around a defense. So I assume it is because they don't have faith in JV players they are relying on to run complex stuff. Or I am just not seeing it.

Because if Butler was actually important to all this.....whoooo boy!

[pepsyman1]

They are blitzing a lot less than they used too. I know during game one, one of the commentators made a lip service mention that Austin had said they were trying to get enough pressure without having to blitz as often. It appears that since Watt went out, they're hasn't been much adjustment to the fact that their best pass rusher isn't there. You know, typical Tomlin....slow to adjust. I'm sure by week 10 he'll have a solution

[Born2Steel]

https://www.behindthesteelcurtain.com/2022/10/7/23389582/the-real-problem-with-the-pittsburgh-steelers-defense-cameron-heyward-larry-ogunjobi-demarvin-leal

This article basically breaks down and explains the evolution of the Steelers defensive scheme starting with LeBeau, to Butler, to 4 games into this season. It's not the complete answer but it gives us some obvious talking points. Unless it all really does boil down to everyone just sucks as the posts would claim.

[pepsyman1]

The one thing that the article really doesn't mention is that we no longer use a dominate NT nor do we have a really strong ILB leading the defense. In the past, these were strong parts of the scheme. Losing Shazier was really big...and we've never really addressed having a truly dominate inside D-lineman that can occupy a couple of guys or fill a huge gap on run plays

[HollywoodSteel]

I think everyone has made valid points. But another problem with blitzing, in the situation we currently find ourselves in, is not just a lack of confidence in the blitzers themselves, but a lack of confidence in the depleted secondary to cover shorthanded long enough for a blitz to succeed.

I imagine we’ll see very little blitzing against the Bucs. At least I really hope we don’t blitz or Brady will absolutely pick us apart. Not that I think not blitzing will work either with the current cast of characters we have. Basically we’re gonna get rolled no matter what we do.

[pepsyman1]

I think everyone has made valid points. But another problem with blitzing, in the situation we currently find ourselves in, is not just a lack of confidence in the blitzers themselves, but a lack of confidence in the depleted secondary to cover shorthanded long enough for a blitz to succeed.

I imagine we’ll see very little blitzing against the Bucs. At least I really hope we don’t blitz or Brady will absolutely pick us apart. Not that I think not blitzing will work either with the current cast of characters we have. Basically we’re gonna get rolled no matter what we do.

If we're gonna get rolled ANYWAY, I wouldn't mind them taking an occasional chance and mess with Brady a little bit. Here and there on some obvious passing downs, some press man coverage teamed with a disguised blitzer. Not every pass play, not even a lot of them. Just occasionally enough that you can fake or show it on other downs and make Brady have to consider that it MIGHT be coming. If we just sit back in a zone coverage scheme Brady is just gonna pick us apart anyway. Nothing to lose.

LeBeau actually did this ONCE, 2011 in New England. We employed a decent amount press man coverage mixed with our normal scheme. Kept them guessing. Held them to 17 points....And we never saw LeBeau break it out again...sigh