The Pittsburgh Steelers made significant changes to their defense, especially the secondary, before the 2025 NFL season. Now about halfway through the campaign, more changes could be coming already.
The Steelers defense has performed poorly to begin this season. The unit looked better at first against the Green Bay Packers. But the wheels came off in the second half, as Green Bay recorded 214 passing yards after halftime.
Following the 35-25 defeat, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin received a question about what he will consider doing differently to improve the secondary next week. With his response, Tomlin stated anything is on the table.
“We just got to be better in all areas, and it starts first with the positions that we put players in,” Tomlin told reporters. “So it’s coaches. It’s players. It’s all of us. We own it. We’ll be better. We have to be.
“I’m open to doing whatever it is that we need to do schematically or from a personnel standpoint to improve this.”
Mike Tomlin’s Steelers Defense Falling Apart
Unlike in Week 7, the Steelers offense didn’t really play well enough to win either against the Packers. But based on social media reaction, a vast majority of the anger from Steelers Nation after Week 8 is focused on Tomlin, his defensive coaching staff and the defensive players.
The Steelers gave up more than 30 points for the fourth time Sunday. This season is the first time since 2003 the Steelers have yielded at least 30 points in four of their first seven games.
The team finished 6-10 in 2003 — the most recent losing season in the franchise’s history.
There appears to be a lot of issues with Tomlin’s defense. But the Steelers plan to fix their secondary with veterans Darius Slay and Jalen Ramsey has largely backfired.
The Pittsburgh secondary looks old and slow. On Sunday night, Packers tight end Tucker Kraft ran for more yards after the catch than any tight end in the NFL since 2018.
What that means for the Steelers defense going forward, though, remains to be seen. Benching former All-Pros Slay and Ramsey would be a surprising move.
They also weren’t responsible for covering Kraft, who finished with a game-high seven catches, 143 receiving yards and two touchdowns Sunday.
Steelers Badly Underperforming Defense
No team has dedicated more salary cap space toward its defense this season than the Steelers. With that in mind, Tomlin’s defense is arguably the most disappointing unit in the entire league.
After Sunday, the Steelers are ranked 22nd in points allowed per game and 26th in total defense.
Against the pass, the Steelers are dead last, allowing 273.3 yards through the air per contest.
Following the Week 7 loss, Tomlin and his defensive players blamed the run defense for its poor showing at stopping the pass. The Steelers are ranked 18th in rushing yards allowed per game after facing the Packers.
The run defense could be better, and the lack of pass rush has significantly contributed to Pittsburgh’s poor results against the pass. But the Steelers secondary should receive a lot of blame after Week 8.
The question going forward, though, is what options Tomlin and his staff will consider to fix it.
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