PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – In the playoff game last year the Steelers were pushed around, this time as the team works to clean up 182 yards against the Jets on the ground, defensive coordinator Teryl Austin said this is different.
“It was not the same thing,” Austin said Thursday. “It was just some things where I didn't think we got knocked around, I just thought we missed some opportunities. I know how I felt coming off that field at Baltimore last year, and I didn't feel the same this year. I feel good with our group. I feel good that they'll rebound and we'll play better moving forward.”
Austin takes blame for not having them in better calls, for not being in the right plays. Then as he studied film he laid out a recurring theme we’ve heard from nearly every Steelers defensive player-they have to do a better job of getting off blocks.
“Everybody thinks it's always just brute strength, but there's a lot of things in there that we're all working on at all positions to be technically better,” Austin said. “Then there's just a lot of, as Mike [Tomlin] likes to call it, kick ass. Sometimes you've just got to get out and beat a block, get off a block and win. We've been emphasizing the technical part of it, obviously, and then also challenging our guys to be really good in terms of kicking butt.”
Then there is being gap sound. It means basically do your assignment. You’ll hear coaches use the phrase do your 1/11th and you just being where you need to be can allow someone else to make a play.
“If you have to be in the B-gap, you got to be in the B-gap,” Heyward explained. “If you get a double it doesn’t matter that you are getting a double, that means someone else is free. When we’ve been at our best, it’s multiple guys either defeating their blocks or just maintaining their gaps.”
“Understanding there are plays to be made, everyone can be thirsty about making those plays. You maintain your gap. You set that line of scrimmage. You set an edge. We are a much better defense when we can do that.”
“It’s just something simple, like not trying to do too much,” said Steelers safety Juan Thornhill. “If you got a certain gap, stay in your gap, that was pretty much the biggest issue last week.”
“When you try to do too much, that’s when you jump out of gap and when you jump out of, those running backs are going to find it and that’s what was happening.”
The Jets ran for 182 yards, the fourth most rushing yards allowed during Week One. Only five teams in the NFC attempted more rushes than the Seahawks in the opener, they run a zone scheme which really challenges defenders to stay within the scheme, to stay in their gaps. Steelers know what is coming, did they learn to stay disciplined.
“It happened,” Austin said. “Every now and then you have a stinker like that. You don't like them, but it gives us an opportunity to get back to work and be better at it this week.”
Thornhill, who in his brief Steelers career has not shown a lack of confidence, believes they did get better.
“I think we got those things fixed and I’m not really worried about it,” Thornhill said.