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Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin delivered a strong message to his secondary ahead of Week 8.
Head coach Mike Tomlin saw the Pittsburgh Steelers secondary experience a rough game in Week 7 against the Cincinnati Bengals. The Steelers allowed veteran quarterback Joe Flacco to complete 31 passes for 342 yards and three touchdowns.
Tomlin placed a lot of blame for the team’s poor defensive effort last week on the run defense. But that doesn’t mean the head coach was alright with how the secondary played.
Tomlin revealed to reporters Tuesday that, overall, the Steelers secondary has not performed up to the standard he foreshadow before the season began.
“It certainly hasn’t met my vision to this point,” Tomlin said. “I’m not discouraged. We got good people there, good players, good people, guys that have good relationships with the game.
“We just going to keep working.”
Tomlin finished that answer on a positive note. However, he wasn’t quite as “glass half full” later in the press conference when he addressed bringing all the star defensive backs the Steelers possess into the same system.
“I’m sire it’s a component of it,” Tomlin added. “We don’t seek comfort or find comfort in that. We got to be better.”
Entering Week 8, the Steelers are ranked second-to-last in passing yards allowed per game.
Steelers Seeking Better Play in Secondary
Tomlin’s club has been searching for answers in the secondary for quite some time. The Steelers haven’t had a top 10 pass defense since 2021.
Over the last three years, the team’s strategy to fix the secondary has mostly been to pair former second-round pick Joey Porter Jr. with a veteran in free agency. Most notably, the Steelers have tried several different former All-Pros, including Patrick Peterson, Darius Slay and Jalen Ramsey.
The results were mixed from 2022-24 (the Steelers drafted Porter in 2023). At times, they’ve been downright bad this season.
That’s a significant problem.
The Steelers pass rush typically impacts opposing quarterbacks and helps the team’s secondary. But last week, Flacco released the ball very quickly, helping to negate T.J. Watt and the other Pittsburgh edge rushers.
When Flacco held onto the ball, Watt and company also made little impact.
If that happens again this season, the Steelers need their secondary to hold up longer in coverage to help the team’s pass rush. Tomlin addressed that Tuesday.
“Disguises, the coverage concepts themselves, the tightness or looseness of the coverage is a component of it,” Tomlin said. “Minimizing the run game is a component of that. When you’re on schedule, you can run rhythmic passing.
“None of these things happen in a vacuum. Getting them behind the sticks will make the quarterback hold onto the ball longer, particularly as it pertains to the line to gain.”
Mike Tomlin Addresses Joey Porter Jr. Penalties
Flacco completed a lot of passes for first downs Thursday. On a couple occasions where he didn’t, Porter committed a penalty in coverage that awarded the Bengals a first down.
Tomlin, though, defended Porter with a simple line when answering a question about Porter’s fouls in Week 7.
“I would imagine those two receivers [Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins] got something to do with it,” said Tomlin.
Porter didn’t have any fouls in coverage this season before Week 7. However, the cornerback committed two defensive pass interference penalties against the Bengals. He also had five penalties versus Cincinnati last season.
Porter and the Steelers secondary did have the tough assignment of covering Chase and Higgins last Thursday. But Pittsburgh has arguably constructed its secondary the past few years to do just that.
It didn’t work as the Steelers planned. Tomlin made it clear Tuesday the team needs better results in the secondary going forward.
Dave Holcomb is a sports reporter covering the NFL and MLB for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Pittsburgh Steelers, Philadelphia Eagles and Detroit Lions. Originally from Pittsburgh, Holcomb has covered college and professional sports for outlets including FanSided, Rotowire and Yardbarker. More about Dave Holcomb
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