Reconfigured Steelers secondary preaching versatility, communication as keys to improvement
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The Pittsburgh Steelers lost some familiar names from the secondary this offseason. Cameron Sutton, Terrell Edmunds, Arthur Maulet and Ahkello Witherspoon are all gone.
However, the franchise attempted to offset those departures by acquiring the likes of Patrick Peterson, Joey Porter Jr., Cory Trice, Keanu Neal and Chandon Sullivan through free agency, trades and the draft. Returning player Damontae Kazee could help as well after only being able to play nine games last year because of injury and a league suspension.
As a result, the back third of the defense could wind up being deeper and more versatile, as a number of those players can play multiple positions. Peterson may bump inside more often than he has in the past with other clubs. Levi Wallace is likely to switch from left corner to right. Kazee can play safety or a slot corner. Reserve defensive back Tre Norwwod plays everywhere. Neal can play safety or a quasi dime linebacker role.
Conceptually, that’s great for defensive coordinator Teryl Austin. However, a lot of new people playing in multiple spots could lead to communication issues. And as just about any player will tell you, the two position groups where communication is the most important are along the line on offense and in the secondary on defense.
“As an offensive line and in the secondary, we all have to be on the same page,” Peterson said after a recent OTA practice. “Guys cannot be doing their own thing. When guys do that, it shows up and hinders the success of whatever team that you’re on. So the offensive linemen and secondary have always been the closest groups in the locker room wherever I went, because we’re around each other so much. Because our communication is so key. Because, if we give up a touchdown, that’s bad. If the quarterback gets sacked, that’s bad. So almost every single down is a meaningful down. That’s why I believe that playing in the secondary and the offensive line is such a valuable and important part of the game.”
Having All-Pro safety Minkah Fitzpatrick as the hub of that communication should help. And thus far, through just a few weeks of practice, most of the Steelers players in the secondary seem to be of the belief that the unit is coalescing.
“That’s the case already,” Sullivan said. “A lot of new guys are here like Neal, me, Pat Pete. But we have played a lot of football in the past, so it’s easy to come in and mesh right away.”
Some may see multiple people learning multiple positions during a time of change on the depth chart as a potential hurdle. But Kazee sees it as a positive.
“We’re one tight DB group. We don’t split safeties and corners in meeting rooms. We are all in one room. I think it’s smart to know the next guy’s position, so you know where his stress is, where you can help out. Knowing that other guy’s position will help you play fast,” Kazee said.
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For Wallace, his concern isn’t so much about learning multiple positions. It’s about getting acclimated to a new side of the field. Or more specifically, getting reacclimated.
When Wallace came to Pittsburgh from Buffalo, he had played on the right side. But with Sutton there last year, Wallace usually manned the left side of the field. After Sutton left for Detroit, Wallace says he texted Grady Brown and lobbied to move back over to the right side. Given that Peterson was acquired after playing primarily on the left side of the field in his previous stops, Wallace says the move makes sense.
“I just have more reps at it,” Wallace said. “It’s all breaking. I’m breaking off my right foot to go left. It just felt really comfortable. … It just feels different. I think, for me, it just lines up perfectly. You know, (Peterson) is left corner, I’m at right corner, and we just keep pushing.”
Neal says if the Steelers can get on the same page consistently, the element of confusion may be transferred to the opposing offenses.
“It helps the scheme,” Neal said. “So offenses don’t understand exactly what we’re doing. They can’t really pinpoint. Having guys move around and play different things is always good.”
Peterson feels — if done well — the ability to switch things up during a game is valuable. But it’s also about creating doubt in film study for players on the other side of the ball in the week leading up to a game.
“That’s the beauty of our secondary. We have so many guys that are interchangeable we can put anywhere on the football field,” Peterson said. “That’s what’s going to cause confusion to the quarterback and confusion to how teams want to implement their game plans. Because now they don’t know where guys want to be lined up and how to attack a certain guy, because he may start in (a certain spot) last week. Then he’s not there the next week. You have somebody else there.”
So long as the Steelers don’t end up confusing themselves, it sounds like a pretty good theory. After allowing 7.0 yards per pass attempt in 2022 (26th in the NFL), any new theory may be worth trying.