The Blitzburgh Two
By CK Stiller
We�ve all seen the speculation on just how the Steelers defense will change under Mike Tomlin. Some continue to believe that the Steelers will switch to a 4-3 in the future, in spite of the constant denials from the organization. Well, I can�t say for sure that Tomlin has no plans of ever making the full switch, but I have long argued that the Steelers will simply incorporate elements of the Tampa 2 into LeBeau�s scheme. And so far, that�s exactly what we�ve seen.
Let me start by saying that a lot of what the Steelers are doing isn�t new. However, there are some interesting changes that have gone somewhat unnoticed. Tomlin has put his stamp on this defense so far, and that should show more and more as the season goes on.
LeBeau has one weakness as a defensive coordinator. When those zone blitzes are picked up, he has generally failed to adjust. This killed the Steelers against Baltimore last season. McNair largely ignored what LeBeau was doing with his blitzes. He had no reason to be concerned. The front 7 couldn�t get to him. He didn�t pay attention to their movement. He threw vertically on the Steelers, allowing him easier reads and large throwing lanes.
If the game against Buffalo is evidence of anything, that won�t happen again this year. Watching the game, the Steelers showed a bit of their hand. We caught glimpses of the Steelers playing cover 2, and it looked pretty good. I�m going to use this article to highlight some of the new looks the Steelers gave. This is especially important this week because it should be similar to how the Steelers play the Cardinals.
Play 1
Here you can see the Steelers in their base 3-4. Nothing very complex happens on this play. Not a lot of movement. Little is done to disguise the coverage besides Polamalu creeping up some. Outside we can see the press coverage, which is a welcome change Steelers fans picked up on even in the pre-season. From the snap of the ball, Polamalu drops back into a deep zone.
Here�s the same play in motion. You can see the corners are in man coverage (forcing their guys outside), and the LB�s dropping into their zones. This is a pretty simple cover 2 look. You end up with the 4 man rush a team like Chicago would use. The only difference is that in a 3-4, there is still some element of surprise. Which backer will be rushing the QB? The Steelers have flexibility there.
The result of this play? Harrison is able to beat Peters as the coverage holds up. He gets a nice hit on Losman, though just misses the sack.
Play 2
This play is a bit more interesting. I see some interesting implications with the defense the Steelers run here. Specifically, it looks like something that we may see a lot of against the Patriots later in the season. I certainly wouldn�t mind.
A third and short. The Steelers are playing with two DL, three LB�s, three CB�s, and three safeties. However, Polamalu is down as a LB. The Steelers used similar personnel groupings last season, but not quite like this. The corners are again pressing.
What�s very interesting about this formation is the blitz potential. Who, exactly, is coming? Let�s look at what the Steelers can do from this formation.
Simply rush the obvious 4. Bring the OLB�s off the edge. Drop Polamalu and Farrior into their zones. You end up with 5 men in underneath coverage and the two safeties over top. A pretty simple cover 2.
Overload the left side. The Steelers love to blitz their corners. What if the nickel back comes off the edge, along with the LOLB? What if it�s Polamalu? Harrison at ROLB could just as easily drop back into coverage along with Farrior/Polamalu or Farrior/McFadden or Polamalu/McFadden.
A 5 or 6 man rush is entirely possible. The Steelers could very well bring Farrior, both OLB�s, and the nickel back. And that�s because of Polamalu. The league�s most versatile defender is frequently asked to serve as a third corner on the field. If this is third and long, the Steelers have cover two with Polamalu covering the deep middle or manning up on the slot receiver. This could just as easily transform into a cover 3, though, under similar circumstances. We can three receivers lined up on the right. Anthony Smith and Ryan Clark could come down and play underneath, with Polamalu manning up on the inside man.
The Steelers are showing a cover 2, but there is the potential to throw some interesting blitzes at the offense. What do we get on this play?
Again, the Steelers play it pretty basic. Harrison comes off the edge. Haggans drops back along with Farrior and Polamalu. A 4 man rush. 7 in coverage. However, you can see that Farrior is all by his lonesome outside. And he notices this, too.
Farrior comes on a delayed blitz. The result of this play is a sack. And, like the play above, it ends up having more to do with the coverage than overwhelming pressure.
Play 3
This is the one run play I chose to highlight.
You can see the Steelers playing the cover 2 of earlier. 7 men in the box. I like this play because it shows Polamalu�s range (there are a number of plays I could use to illustrate this). From the base 3-4. It�s more like a 5-2, however, as the OLB�s are lined up on the line.
Polamalu quickly reads run. The Steelers DL and OLB�s do their job (with the exception of Haggans). They stay square to the line. They control their gaps.
We can see the hole between Haggans and Taylor. It�s Polamalu�s job to come up and fill the lane. And he does just that. Lynch hasn�t even hit the line of scrimmage yet and Polamalu has filled the hole from over 10 yards deep. The play starts with 7 men in the box, but Polamalu quickly takes away the offenses advantage.
This particular play ends up with Lynch bouncing it outside around Taylor. Though, it�s called back as Evans is called for holding.
Play 4
Similar to the defense used on play 2. The Steelers have the same personnel groupings on the field. The Steelers aren�t quite as vanilla this time around, though.
This time the Steelers blitz 5. They use Polamalu to cover the middle. You can see that McFadden gets a very strong jam on the slot receiver. This is the least successful of the Steelers plays, as the Bills leave 6 in to block 5. The pressure doesn�t quite get there. The Bills throw an out on Townsend for the first down.
We�ll see more of these defenses this weekend against Arizona. I�m pretty confident of that. These defenses have large implications for future meetings against Seattle and New England, as well. It�s an extra wrinkle teams need to prepare for. The Ravens know the Steelers blitz schemes. They�ve seen them for years and years. They now have to prepare for something a little different.
It�s interesting to note that the Steelers changed their scheme up following the Bills first (and only) scoring drive. LeBeau played pretty conservatively prior to this point, rarely bringing more than four or five. But the Bills were clearly determined to run the ball. LeBeau adjusted on the fly, or rather went back to what he knows best. The Steelers began to apply the pressure. If the Bills wanted to run, the Steelers were going to dare them to throw. They blitzed heavily. Polamalu began playing up as that fifth LB. And the Bills run game did nothing the rest of the game.
CBS had a nice graphic from this game.
The Steelers have combined those two defenses, and teams coming in to play them need to be prepared for facing, essentially, two different defensive philosophies. But it isn�t just a matter of switching between the two. There is the potential to merge the concepts of both at the same time. Maybe the Blitzburgh 2 isn�t the best name for the Steelers new defense, but it�s what I�ll be calling what the Steelers are doing until someone comes up with something better.