Steelers’ defense a work in progress
Buffalo Bills tight end Chris Gragg (89) scores a touchdown in front of Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Doran Grant (24) during the second half Saturday in Orchard Park, N.Y. it was one of two touchdowns Bills tight ends scored against the Steelers' defense. (AP Photo/Bill Wippert)
The Steelers were without inside linebacker Lawrence Timmons in their preseason game Saturday against Buffalo.
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. – The All-Pro center is out until at least midseason. The All-Pro running back is suspended for the first two games of the regular season. The emerging deep threat who scored eight touchdowns in 10 games as a rookie is facing a four-game suspension to open the season.
And, oh yeah, is there a kicker out there who can stay healthy?
The problems continue to mount for the Steelers as they head into their final week of the preseason.
But none of those issues were the biggest concern for the team following its 43-19 preseason loss Saturday at Buffalo.
A young defense that was going to be a work in progress this season hasn’t had a lot of work together on the field in training camp and the preseason because of both design and nagging injuries.
With just over one week before the Steelers head to New England to open the regular season Sept. 10, nobody really knows what the team’s defense will look like as a unit.
The level of concern with the defense is growing weekly, especially after the Steelers surrendered 542 yards against the Bills.
“A little bit? A lot,” said defensive end Cameron Heyward on the improvements needed. “I don’t know what the exact cause was, but there’s going to have to be a level of improvement going into the season. We’ll look at it and try to get better from it.”
Many of the players aren’t going to like what they see.
The Bills completed 30 of 33 passes for 386 yards. They rushed for 156 yards on 35 carries, a healthy 4.5-yards per carry average.
The Steelers were playing without defensive end Stephon Tuitt, Pro Bowl inside linebacker Lawrence Timmons and free safety Mike Mitchell, but the defense allowed a pair of big plays – a 41-yard run and 67-yard touchdown pass – when their starting unit was on the field against the Bills.
That has continued a trend in this preseason. In eight first-quarter possessions, when presumably the Steelers have players on the field who are either starters or key backups, they have allowed three drives of 10-plus plays, three touchdowns, one field goal and one missed field goal.
“It’s concerning,” admitted linebacker James Harrison. “But at the same time, we’ve got another game left. We’ll go to the drawing board and fix whatever it is we need to fix, hopefully, and get back out there.”
One of the biggest issues seems to be the team’s adjustment to the Cover-2 defense head coach Mike Tomlin and new defensive coordinator Keith Butler have installed as part of the base package.
The Steelers have consistently had trouble defending opposing tight ends in that package and it showed again against the Bills, as H-back Charles Clay split the safeties down the middle of the field and snuck behind linebacker Vince Williams for a 67-yard touchdown catch.
Getting Timmons, who is dealing with turf toe, and Mitchell, who has missed time this preseason with hamstring and ankle issues, back could help that. But the Steelers weren’t using that as an excuse.
“Injuries are going to happen. That’s part of the game,” Harrison said. “We’ve got to go out and execute and play defense the way it’s drawn up.”
If not, they’ll continue to see more of the same results.
“Whoever’s out there has to know what to do. That’s what practice is for. It’s got to get better,” Heyward said. “I would say it was just unacceptable. We understand that there are going to be mistakes, but we’ve got to get better and not let it happen anymore.”
Odds and end zones
The Steelers host Carolina Thursday in their final preseason game. … The team must trim its roster by 15 players by Tuesday to get to the NFL-mandated roster limit of 75. … The Steelers are expected to sign another placekicker at least for this week after Garrett Hartley suffered a pulled hamstring against the Bills.