Nov 26, 2014 4 min read

PITTSBURGH – Continuity is seen as the backbone for strong play on the football field.

More often than not, the more combinations of players a team is forced to use, the less likely it is to see a lot of success.

Despite their 7-4 record, the Steelers have had very little continuity in their secondary, as injuries and ineffectiveness have forced the team to use four different starting lineup combinations.

Sunday against the New Orleans Saints (4-7), the Steelers will trot out their fifth secondary combination. Only this one will look a little closer to what the team had in mind when it broke training camp in August.

Barring a setback, strong safety Troy Polamalu and cornerback Ike Taylor, two players who have been with the team since 2003, are expected to start against the Saints at Heinz Field. Suddenly, the Steelers will look a lot more like, well, the Steelers.

Those two will pair with free safety Mike Mitchell and cornerback William Gay to form the starting secondary. Veteran Brice McCain, who has started the past five games at cornerback after Cortez Allen was benched, will likely serve as the nickel corner over Antwon Blake, who has been playing in that role.

“Communication is key, secondary-wise,” said Taylor, who has been out of the lineup since suffering a fractured forearm Sept. 21 at Carolina. “Troy and I have been together 12 (years). Troy, Gay and me, eight. Mike is the newcomer. McCain is a newcomer. Just a lot of young guys, but those guys have been getting a lot of experience, a lot of reps in the games. And they’ve been making plays.”

The Steelers cornerbacks have recorded six of the team’s eight interceptions this season, returning three for touchdowns, which is tied for the league lead. The six interceptions might not sound like a lot, but Pittsburgh got just four out of its corners in the 2013 season. In 2012, that number was three.

Now, the team just needs some kind of production out of its safeties.

Polamalu, who missed the past two games with a knee injury, and Mitchell have yet to intercept a pass this season. Polamalu entered the season with 32 career interceptions, while Mitchell had four for Carolina in 2013.

Mitchell, signed to a five-year, $25-million deal as a free agent in the offseason, is the Steelers’ second-leading tackler behind Lawrence Timmons, but has produced too few big plays in his first year with the team.

He admits that there has been a learning curve.

“It’s more (about) understanding,” said Mitchell. “Those guys have played together. If something didn’t work, they fixed it together. They knew how to fix it. Now, I’m the new guy coming in. When I see it, it’s the first time I’ve seen it. Whereas, other guys, they’ve already played it before. It’s not learning the defense, I know the defense. It’s learning how we handle certain routes within that defense. And you don’t learn them until something comes up. The coaches are like, ‘Oh, this is how we do it.’ It’s things like that.”

The safety duo has forced three fumbles and recovered one, but turnovers will be critical as the Steelers head into their final five games in a muddled AFC playoff chase in which 11 teams in the conference have winning records.

Led by Drew Brees, the Saints enter Sunday’s game at Heinz Field ranked third in the NFL in passing, averaging 309 yards per game. Pittsburgh is 16th in the NFL, allowing 242 yards passing per game.

But Brees has thrown 11 interceptions this season and the Saints are minus-9 in turnover margin.

“They’ve been in some tight ball games and oftentimes turnovers are a result of tight ball games,” said Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin. “Sometimes the bubble bursts.”

The Steelers are hopeful that the return of Polamalu and Gay to their secondary will help shore up the back end of their defense and get the team ready for an important stretch run.

“Troy and Ike have a decade of experience of playing in our defensive system,” said Tomlin. “Sometimes it’s just a matter of them getting healthy and getting back out there and playing.”

Steelers wide receiver Antonio Brown, who leads the NFL in receptions with 88 and is second in receiving yards with 1,161, tops all NFL receivers in fan Pro Bowl voting. Running back Le’Veon Bell and center Maurkice Pouncey are second at their respective positions. … The Steelers will honor the 40th anniversary of their 1974 Super Bowl team during a halftime ceremony at Sunday’s game. A number of the players from that team will be in attendance.