Early in the 2025-26 season, the Pittsburgh Steelers have been ravaged by injuries. Mainly on the defensive side of the ball, too, and the results are showing it.
Fortunately, several players seem to be on the mend. One of them, safety DeShon Elliott, continues to recover from a knee injury but missed Wednesday’s practice. Signs point to the duo of Juan Thornhill and Chuck Clark once again picking up the slack in his absence.
What if the Steelers have a secret weapon, though? Could recent signing Jabrill Peppers see the field more often in Week 3?
Jabrill Peppers Could See Increased Workload Against Former Team
Considering Sunday’s game is against his old New England Patriots team, it seems possible. Speaking to the media on September 17, head coach Mike Tomlin admitted he’s “open” to giving the newcomer an increased workload in multiple areas.
“I haven’t delved into his specific familiarity with New England,” Tomlin said. “But certainly, being his second week here, I’m open to expanding the utilization of him not only as a [special] teamer, but as a defender.”
Peppers’ background with the Patriots is extensive. The former first-round pick found his way there for the 2022 campaign and wound up playing in 38 games for them from then through last season. He also has experience lining up across from young quarterback Drake Maye, the present and (planned) future of the franchise.
It all comes down to whether Peppers is deemed ready for more snaps. Defensive coordinator Teryl Austin shared Tomlin’s same optimism.
“He’s a physical guy,” Austin said. “Tough, good tackler. In getting to know him in the last couple of days, our guys think he’s got a good football IQ and sense of what’s going on around [him]. A lot of times, it’s just putting it into their own terminology so they can function faster. We like those things about him, and we’ll see how far he takes us this week.”
In Week 2’s loss to the Seattle Seahawks, Peppers didn’t log a single rep on defense. He played seven snaps on special teams. Any Sunday involvement on defense will be his first with the Steelers, adding even more intrigue to the possibility.
Steelers’ Defense Desperately Needs to Improve Early in Season
Any positive trend for the Steelers would be nice at this point. A season ago, Austin’s group ranked eighth in scoring and 12th in yards allowed. Through two games this year, it sits 29th out of 32 teams in both statistics. When was the last time the defense sniffed anything that bad over the course of a full year? 1988, when Pittsburgh was 28th in both categories.
Being so banged up on that side of the ball isn’t helping. Regardless, improvement simply must take place. Early in the season, this is a unit that ranks 30th in EPA/play surrendered on defense according to SumerSports. Pittsburgh is struggling to limit the pass, slotting in at 28th there. Their run defense, ranked 24th, is far from fantastic. The eventual return of rookie first-round pick Derrick Harmon could help, but that remains to be seen.
Week 2’s loss in the home opener didn’t inspire much confidence. In their first game of the season, the Seahawks’ offense struggled immensely. As it turns out, going on the road to square off against the Steelers was just what the doctor ordered. Klint Kubiak’s offense averaged 6.2 yards per play last Sunday, also converting on 43% of its third downs.
Expecting Peppers to morph into a full-time defensive player is foolish. He’s merely a depth piece at this point. With that said, maybe giving him some run could help slow down a Patriots offense that’s still looking to find its footing.
The football world knows the Steelers’ defense certainly falls under that umbrella as well.
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