The Hybrid Defense

The Steelers 3-4 generally involves playing more cover 3 and cover 1, while only occasionally using a two deep zone. The schemes allow the Steelers to bring pressure with a safety, corner, or LB on any given play. The intent is to keep the opposing offense guessing as to who will be rushing on any given play. However, the key still remains the OLB�s, who blitz more than any other position and serve a role similar to DE�s in a 4-3. As everyone knows, these players are usually undersized or very athletic college DE�s.

To play a hybrid, the Steelers will need their OLB�s to be capable of lining up in a three point stance and rushing the QB as DE in a 4-3. Joey Porter and Clark Haggans have occasionally been used in this role in the past in obvious passing situations, but they�ve had limited results. Neither has much ability to take on OT�s, with Haggans being the better suited of the two for this role. With Porter gone, and the Steelers having expressed intent to play a 3-4 in the future, OLB/DE would seem to be the top priority in the draft. The Steelers have no one on the roster who could serve this role adequately, and it is essential if you want to play a 4-3. James Harrison is being penciled in as the starter next year, but I think it�s more likely the team will be starting a rookie.

The top two candidates in round 1 are Anthony Spencer and Jarvis Moss. A guy like Tim Crowder could be drafted in the second. Spencer weighs 260, and played at 270 at Purdue. Crowder comes in at 270. Moss at 250. All three would have the potential to fill this void on the defense. Besides making a hybrid possible, they would go a long way to fixing the problem of a lack of pass rush. Scheme can only get you so far. At some point the OLB�s need to be able to beat a blocker for the blitzes to have success. Haggans and Porter were unable to do that last year.

The starting defense would look like last year, with the differences being the rookie in for Porter, Anthony Smith at FS, and McFadden being the full-time starter instead of Townsend.

The key to getting after the QB in a 4-3 or cover 2 ultimately rests on the DE�s. 10 sacks is a lot from DB�s or LB�s in a 4-3, and in the cover 2 teams rarely blitz. Pressure comes from the front 4. To run a successful hybrid, a DE is essential.

Assuming that the Steelers would give more of the cover 2 look out of any 4-3 formation, it�s important to understand just what it is. Most know that it just means two defenders in deep zones, usually the safeties. Each covers half the field. Many teams that run the �Tampa 2,� however, have changed this some. Much like the Steelers of the 70�s, they rely on their athletic LB�s, specifically the MLB, to drop back into a deep zone in the middle of the field. This allows the safeties to cheat over. It�s almost a cover 3 look. A guy like Brian Urlacher has the range to go back over 20 yards. This also asks the OLB�s to cover more territory underneath.

The problem for the Steelers, though? They don�t have a LB on the roster that athletic. Farrior comes closest to fitting the bill. However, that leaves Foote and Haggans outside, neither of which is a very good OLB in a 4-3. The LB situation, along with the DE�s, will make any immediate switch to a cover 2 unlikely. The Steelers will need to add pass rushing DE�s, along with some LB�s better suited to the scheme. Moss/Spencer/Crowder would double as 3-4 OLB�s if/when a full switch was made, while also giving the defense the flexibility to occasionally make the switch to a 4-3.

There has been some concern about the Steelers DB�s if they played a cover 2, but this is unnecessary. The major concern would be with Polamalu, but one doesn�t have to look much further than guys like Lynch and Sanders to see that there is plenty of room for a safety to play up in the box in a cover 2. Beyond that, Polamalu is a safety at his best when he is allowed to read and react to the QB. In a cover 2, defenders, especially the safeties, are often facing the QB. Polamalu has the speed and range to excel in this system. Polamalu struggles in man coverage, mainly due to poor technique and ball skills (as opposed to an inability to run with receivers). Let him read and react to the QB. As Peyton Manning learned, he can cover more ground than just about any other defender in the league.

The Steelers corners, too, could benefit from such a move. Cover 2 corners are generally less athletic. They are covering less ground, and they have safety help over the top. This is compared to the Steelers current system, where they are usually left on an island with a receiver. Both are physical and would be better suited playing up on the line. Safety help over top will allow them to get rid of those big cushions.

In the mean time, playing some cover 2 out of a 4-3 could go a long way to solving part of the defenses problems. Last year, the Steelers made Steve McNair look like one of the league�s best QB�s. The Colts made him look terrible. The reason is simple. McNair is being asked to make more complicated reads against the Colts, as well as tougher throws.

Against the Steelers, McNair really just ignores what�s going on with the front 7 (who could not pressure him). McNair was throwing the ball deep at an unusual rate against the Steelers because of this. The Ravens know the Steelers system. McNair was basically just reading the safeties and corners. He was getting cover 3 and cover 1 looks most of the game. This leaves the seam route wide open, and he exploited the Steelers here big time. His wide receivers, or even worse, Heap, were almost always in one-on-one match-ups. Think about how the Bears and Buccaneers tried to use vertical passing games with their young QB�s. It�s just because they give simpler reads.

In a cover 2, the deep routes are generally taken away, and you are left to try and find the throwing lanes underneath. That generally means you have the two corners and three LB�s sitting in underneath coverage. McNair struggled to find throwing lanes against the Colts, or he was just unable to put the ball where it needed to be.

The Steelers line-up in a 4-3 would most likely be as followed:

A. Smith Polamalu

Foote Farrior Haggans

Rookie Hampton Smith Keisel

Adding one of the tweeners from above would have an added benefit. The Steelers would have the players to implement the 46 that the Ravens run. The Steelers could give three distinct looks, and show them to an offense without having to change their personnel on the field. By bringing Polamalu down into the box and using him as a fourth LB, and putting the ROLB down in a three point stance, the Steelers could run the same schemes Baltimore does. This isn�t a massive shift from what the Steelers already do in the 3-4, but it would open up new blitz packages and create more chances for mismatches for the LB�s. As the Steelers saw, it can be almost impossible to tell who is blitzing if it�s run right.

This also opens the door for the Steelers to get more out of their DL. Trevor Pryce saw his career revived last year in Baltimore because he was being used as an inside pass rusher, as opposed to as a traditional 4-3 DE. Smith has similar potential. Keisel has the athleticism to make a respectable pass rusher as a 4-3 DE. Hampton in a 4-3 would find himself getting more mismatches. He is a player that demands attention from two blockers. Throw in blitzers as well as the front 4, and the Steelers pass rush could be revitalized. The LB�s and DL could all get to the QB more, and take a huge amount of strain off the DB�s.

The Steelers would not have to make drastic changes to do any of this. The key part is the LB�s, specifically the replacement for Porter. He would allow the Steelers to run all three schemes at once. At the end of the season, LeBeau stated that they were going to review the blitz schemes to make sure that they were putting the players in the best positions to make plays. What I read out of that (maybe it�s just a product of wishful thinking) is that he saw what the Ravens were doing. He sees the Patriots switch between a 4-3 and a 3-4. The Steelers don�t need much to do the same. Add this with Tomlin�s experiences with the cover 2, and the Steelers have a chance to do something special on defense in 2007 and beyond. It could be the most versatile defense in the league.