There can be a whole lot of dialog about how the Steelers plan to switch their well-known caller, however I am extra concerned with totally different elements of this reboot. Immediately, Tomlin had the chance to return the franchise to the blue-collar method that helped carry six Lombardy Awards to Pittsburgh. Beneath the management of Chuck Noll, Invoice Cowher and Tomlin, the Steelers have at all times been at their greatest with protection leads the cost. The franchise rose to prominence behind the “metal curtain,” with a gaggle of Corridor of Famers choking opponents at each flip – and the Steelers retained the identical form of really feel after the fantastic ’70s. Every of Pittsburgh’s six Tremendous Bowl titles was backed by a protection that ranked within the prime 5 in scoring protection And the The unit’s distinctive efficiency throughout the Dick Lebow period overlapped with Tomlin’s arrival and emergence as one of many best coaches in NFL historical past (see: 15 seasons, zero dropping data).
With this scheme in thoughts, it appears to me that Pittsburgh is taking a “again to the longer term” method. With Terrell Austin taking up as coordinator, and Brian Flores as senior protection assistant, the Steelers created an excellent protection assume tank that might change the unit’s id going ahead. Whereas I do not anticipate Pittsburgh to curb the aggressiveness that has lengthy been related to this workforce, the creativity that Austin and Flores present may result in a extra numerous method to taking part in excessive stress protection.
Austin, who spent the final three seasons in Pittsburgh as a senior defensive assistant and secondary coach, takes the reins of defensive issues from Keith Butler. Austin beforehand served as defensive coordinator for the Bengals and Lions. He’s an advocate of mixing pluralism and ease. Primarily, he desires to indicate attacking an phantasm throughout the pre-snap stage earlier than switching to a easy protection that permits his gamers to carry out at a quick tempo after the ball is caught. Fixed motion and disguises can confuse each younger and outdated midfielders. It is laborious to inform what comes from a protection that refuses to play like a gaggle of puppet troopers.
In the meantime, Flores brings the expertise of a former senior coach/defensive coordinator who’s nicely versed in “snowflake” sport plans that change from week to week. As a defensive participant, Flores items switched between heavy man ideas and stuck space protection, primarily based on matches and the way he wished to neutralize key personnel. Typically in Miami he used a Cowl 0-based scheme that mixes bluff and bluff to maintain the quarterback dazed and awkward within the pocket. (Keep in mind the Thursday night time dolphins’ defeat of Lamar Jackson and the crows again in November?) The barrage of lightning assaults from vaults and slot angles in sub-packs has made life depressing for opponents making an attempt to run the ball to the sides or throw it out of a pocket in opposition to Flores’ fins. As well as, the techniques of deception and deception prevented the offensive coordinators from utilizing your entire guidelines of the sport. With a smaller roster of play at their disposal, the midfielders struggled to assault Flores’ protection over the course of final season, permitting Miami to win eight of their final 9 video games.
