This Pittsburgh Steelers Defense Might Be Historically Good, and Maybe That Is All They Need

This comes with a lot of “ifs”.  But if this Steelers defense is as good as they seem after 3 games, they could carry an average offense to a Super Bowl.

No, I am not saying they will win the Super Bowl, you don’t need to claim your spot on the parade route yet.

But if they continue to dominate opposing offenses like they have to start the season, then it is fair to start wondering.

The Steelers defense was absolutely dominant in their 20-10 victory over the Los Angeles, by way of San Diego, Chargers.

Now are the Chargers some offensive juggernaut?  They don’t appear to be.

But, the defense was so good it GAINED yards in the second half.

Seriously, minus 5 yards is what they “gave up” to the Chargers in the second half.

Yes Justin Herbert had to leave the game, but the defense’s dominance was part of why he had to leave.  They were suffocating him in the pocket, it was only a matter of time before he was going to be knocked out of the game.

Now look at the previous two opponents that the Steelers had held to 10 points or less.  

The Broncos just demolished the surprising upstart Buccaneers 26-7.

The Falcons beat the Eagles last week, and this week were a blown PI call away from beating the Chiefs.

To be realistic, the Steelers cannot keep playing at this pace on defense.  They will drift back towards the mean at some point.  But the question is when, and how close to the mean will they get?

If last year's defense can carry Matt Canada’s offense to the playoffs, then what can this year's defense do?  The Steelers won’t need to average 28 points a game to win a Super Bowl if this unit stays healthy.

Think it's impossible for a dominant defense to carry an, at best, mediocre offense to a Super Bowl victory?

What about the 2015 Denver Broncos with the Ghost of Peyton Manning at QB?

What about the 2000 Baltimore Ravens with Trent Dilfer?

The 2002 Tampa Bay Buccaneers did it with Brad Johnson.

Heck, even the 2008 Steelers were only 20th in points scored that year.

There are countless examples of an all time defense carrying a team to a Super Bowl.

Does this Steelers defense have what it takes?  Let's take a look.

TJ Watt might be the most impactful player in the NFL that isn’t a Quarterback.

His presence alone affects the opposing team's offense on every play.  Even if he doesn’t get a sack, he frequently draws double teams, leaving the other side one on one.

Cam Heyward was so good on Sunday that he made a tackle on the ball carrier while reaching around the double team that was blocking him.

Joey Porter Junior is the cornerback that the Steelers have desperately needed for decades.  Seriously, how nice is it having half of the field eliminated from the opposition’s passing game?

Patrick Queen and the rest of the middle linebackers got to show what they can do against the Chargers.

JK Dobbins, who somehow couldn’t walk down the sidewalk in Baltimore without getting hurt, was all of a sudden doing flips into the endzone and averaging over 7 yards per carry.  

The Chargers were tops in the NFL in most rushing statistics, then this iteration of the Steel Curtain snuffed them out.

Then you have Minkah on the back end who is a perennial all pro and can make the splash plays we’ve become accustomed to seeing from safeties here in Pittsburgh.

Add it all together, and you have a defense that could carry one of those average offenses to a Super Bowl.

Not saying it will happen, I’m just saying that it could.  Health and plenty of other questions come into play here.

The biggest question of them all is this.  Can this defense beat Patrick Mahomes, or Josh Allen in the playoffs?  That’s it.  That’s the only question that matters.

Ok fine, the Buffalo Bills will always choke, so really the question is, can this defense beat Patrick Mahomes in the playoffs?

Probably not, but…it could. 

Just like the Steelers beat the Colts in the 2005 Divisional Round.  It’d have to be a stunner.  

Maybe Harrison Butker will miss the game tying field goal as time expires? Maybe there will be a special teams touchdown.  Who knows.

But at the end of the day, it boils down to this.  Are the Steelers an all time great defense, and if so can they beat Mahomes in January?

To answer the first question, it's way too early to judge, it’s just three games.

To answer the second question, yes they could beat Patrick Mahomes with an all time great defense, but that’s only if they turn out to be one.