Steelers defense finding ways to get job done without producing QB sacks

In five weeks, an unprecedented run of NFL pass-rushing excellence will end for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

For the first time since 2016, the Steelers won’t lead the NFL in sacks. And, barring an unexpected turnaround down the stretch, they also won’t reach the 50-sack plateau for the first time in those six seasons.

Losing the title as the league’s most dominant pass-rushing team isn’t a concern to the player most responsible for so many of those sacks.

“As long as we win games, I don’t give a (expletive),” outside linebacker T.J. Watt said last week.

The Steelers will try to win their third game in a row Sunday when they face the division-leading Baltimore Ravens at Acrisure Stadium. And they will do so with a defense that has improved in limiting big plays yet hasn’t consistently put the quarterback on the ground.

The Steelers have accumulated 23 sacks during their 5-7 start, which ranks tied for No. 24 in the NFL and is less than half of what the league-leading Dallas Cowboys have recorded (48). The Steelers are on pace to finish with 33, their fewest in a season since 2014. Even with a strong finishing kick, they might be hard pressed to reach 38 sacks, which they amassed in 2016 before beginning their stretch of five seasons with at least 50.

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“We would like more sacks because those things change the game,” defensive coordinator Teryl Austin said Thursday. “But, more importantly, we want to keep the big plays off us. That is the most important thing for a defense, keeping the big plays off you.”

In their past three wins, the Steelers have allowed only four plays combined that gained at least 20 yards, only one longer than 30 and none over 40. Contrast that to the 37-30 loss to Cincinnati when the Steelers allowed seven plays of at least 20 yards.

In those four games, which coincides with the return of Watt from his seven-game absence because of a torn pectoral muscle and knee injury, the defense has produced just eight sacks.

“I think it’s a credit to the back end,” said outside linebacker Alex Highsmith, whose 10 sacks lead the Steelers, when asked how the defense has overcome the reduced sacks. “Guys are making a lot of plays back there whether it’s (pass breakups) or interceptions. We have guys back there who are able to make plays when the ball is in the air.”

The lack of a pass rush hasn’t been for a lack of trying. Not all of the blitz has left the team’s Blitzburgh moniker. The Steelers have blitzed on 32.2% of all defensive plays, the fifth-highest number in the NFL and an increase from 27% in Keith Butler’s final season as defensive coordinator.

Still, for all of the emphasis in pressuring the quarterback, the Steelers are in the bottom third in sacks and rank No. 27 in quarterback hits with 55. Watt’s absence since the Steelers opened the season with seven sacks against Cincinnati is one reason, as evidenced by the team’s five sacks combined over the next six games.

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“It’s not just (about) sacks, it’s pressure,” said defensive tackle Cameron Heyward, who is second on the Steelers with five. “It’s making the team one-dimensional, sticking on the run. I know our run game wasn’t great last week, but for the most part I think we’ve done a much better job with that since the bye.”

Despite allowing the Falcons to run for 146 yards, the Steelers have limited opponents to 107.5 rushing yards on the season, which has improved them from last in the NFL in 2021 to seventh this season. By stopping the run, the Steelers can focus on harassing the quarterback.

“We’re doing a better job rushing the passer,” Highsmith said. “The film can explain that. It’s what we have to do. It (stinks) not getting home as much as we usually do, but I think if we continue to apply pressure, the sacks will come.”

It hasn’t happened yet for the NFL’s reigning Defensive Player of the Year. In the four games since being activated from injured reserve, Watt has one-half sack and five quarterback hits. Watt also is drawing the double teams that have helped Highsmith get preferable pass-rush matchups, and he’s been bothered by a nagging rib injury since his return.

“I’m sure it does pain him not to take the quarterback down because he knows how impactful that is on the game,” Austin said. “In terms of how it affects us and how he’s performing for us, he’s still really good, and he’s had an impact for us.”