Steelers/Bears Defensive Breakdown

by Romain El 82 on Sep 21, 2009 5:55 PM EDT Comment 8 comments

Well, what can you say...not the outcome Steeler fans wanted or expected, but I woke up this morning in northern Michigan to a constant rain - hopefully it washes away the bad taste from this loss and cleans the wounds; I know I'm less irate this morning than I was last night.

Version 2.0 of the defensive breakdown is here, hopefully much improved from last weeks version (a few more minor tweaks forthcoming). Unfortunately because of the Bengals inability to decide if they wanted to beat the Packers or not I missed the first defensive series of the game and only got to see four or five plays of the first offensive series. What can you do. On to the review!

Drive 2. Starting Point: Chicago 30 yard line, 4:53 First Quarter.

D 'n D Formation Total Yardage Tackler(s) Play Type Rushers Notes

1&10 3-4 (6) Fox/Gay Pass Middle (Olsen) 3-man +98 (Push)

2&4 3-4 (1) Keisel/Fox Run Middle (Forte) 3-man Keisel in a 2-point

3&3 2-4-5 (--) Timmons Pass Right (Olsen) 4-man +94 (Coverage)

Total Field Position Change: From Chicago 30 to Chicago 37; 7 yards total. Defense on field for 1:27.

Drive 3. Starting Point: Chicago 9 yard line, 13:24 Second Quarter.

D 'n D Formation Total Yardage Tackler(s) Play Type Rushers Notes

1&10 3-4 (11) Fox/Gay Pass Left (Davis) 4-man +99 (Pressure)

1&10 3-4 (--) None Pass Middle (Davis) 4-man +98, 92 (Pressure)

2&10 3-4 (7) Gay Pass Left (Bennett) 3-man

3&3 1-5-5 (13) Gay Pass Middle (Knox) 5-man +51 (Pressure)

1&10 3-4 (N/A) N/A Holding Chicago 4-man +92 (Pressure)

1&20 3-4 (5) Farrior/Hampton/Fox Pass Middle (Forte) 3-man

2&15 3-4 (6) Farrior Pass Middle (Davis) 5-man OLB Blitz +92,99 (PR)

3&9 1-5-5 (--) None Pass Left (Knox) 5, Rightside Overload +Pressure

Total Field Position Change: From the Chicago 9 to Chicago 41; 32 yards total. Defense on field for 3:40.

**Rain began falling as the Bears punt**

Drive 3. Starting Point: Chicago 3 yard line, 6:16 Second Quarter.

D 'n D Formation Total Yardage Tackler(s) Play Type Rushers Notes

1&10 3-4 (N/A) N/A Roughing the Passer 4-man +/-92, +91

1&10 3-4 (--) None Pass Middle (Hester) 4-man +92

2&10 3-4 (15) Clark/Fox Run Right (Peterson) 5, OLB Blitz

1&10 3-4 (22) Clark Pass Right (Knox) 5, OLB Blitz -24 (Coverage)

1&10 3-4 (--) Clark Hit Pass Left (Olsen) 4-man +23 (Hit)

2&10 3-4 (7) Kirschke/Mundy Screen Right (Forte) 3-man

3&3 1-5-5 (N/A) N/A Pass Right (Knox) 4-man -51 (Tackle), -94

1&10 3-4 (0) 98, 57, 56, 22 Run Right (Peterson) 3-man

2&10 1-5-5 (16) Gay Pass Right (Knox) 5-man -22 (Coverage)

1&10 1-5-5 (7) Gay Pass Left (Peterson) 5-man

2&3 3-4 (--) None Pass Left (Olsen) 3-man

3&3 3-4 (4) Taylor Pass Left (Peterson) 5, OLB Blitz

1&G6 3-4 (1) Farrior Run Right (Peterson) 3-man +51

2&G5 3-4 (-1) Carter Scramble Left (Cutler) 3-man +Defense, +23

3&G6 2-4-5 (6 TD) Carter Pass Right (Davis, TD) 4-man -23 (TD)

Total Field Position Change: From the Chicago 3 to Pittsburgh GL; 97 yards total, TD allowed. Defense on field for 5:51. 23 seconds remain before half.

Drive 4. Starting Point: Chicago 35 yard line, 14:04, Third Quarter.

D 'n D Formation Total Yardage Tackler(s) Play Type Rushers Notes

1&10 3-4 (--) Woodley Pass Right (Knox) 5, OLB Blitz +56 (QB Hit)

2&10 3-4 (2) Harrison Run Middle (Forte) 4-man +92 (Pursuit)

3&7 2-4-5 (--) Grounding Pass Right (Hester) 6-man +56, +94

**This play will be diagrammed out in a future Defensive Breakdown Post**

Total Field Position Change: from the Chicago 35 to Chicago 37; 2 yards total. Defense on field for 0:59.

Drive 5. Starting Point: Chicago 23 yard line, 10:25, Third Quarter.

D 'n D Formation Total Yardage Tackler(s) Play Type Rushers Notes

1&10 3-4 (7) Farrior Pass Middle (Davis) 3-man

2&3 3-4 (N/A) N/A False Start

2&8 2-4-5 (25) Townsend Run Middle (Forte) 4-man

1&10 2-4-5 (N/A) N/A False Start

1&15 1-5-5 (35) Carter Screen Left (Bennett) 5-man Perfect call vs blitz

1&10 3-4 (--) None Pass Right (Knox) 3-man +91, +99, +25 (Hit)

2&10 3-4 (5) Gay/Clark Run Middle Forte

3&5 1-5-5 (--) None Pass Left Tipped 5-man +Pressure

Total Field Position Change: from the Chicago 23 to Chicago 40; 17 yards total. Defense on field for 3:48.

Drive 6. Starting Point: Chicago 13 yard line. 5:26, Third Quarter.

D 'n D Formation Total Yardage Tackler(s) Play Type Rushers Notes

1&10 3-4 (9) Carter Pass Right (Forte) 4-man

2&1 3-4 (3) Farrior Run Middle (Forte) 3-man

1&10 3-4 (-4) Smith Scramble Left (Cutler) 5, OLB Blitz +92, +91

Link to play: http://www.nfl.com/gamecenter/2009092011/2009/REG2/steelers@bears/analyze/box-score#tab:watch/contentId:09000d5d812cc7c6

2&14 3-4 (1) Timmons Screen Right (Hester) 4-man +Contain, +94

3&13 2-4-5 (5) Taylor Draw Middle (Forte) 5-man -Tackling

Total Field Position Change: From Chicago 13 to Chicago 27, 14 yards total. Defense on field for 3:07.

Drive 7. Starting Point: Chicago 28, 11:37 Fourth Quarter.

D 'n D Formation Total Yardage Tackler(s) Play Type Rushers Notes

1&10 3-4 (7) Gang Pass Right (Knox) 3-man

2&3 3-4 (0) Farrior Run Left (Forte) 4-man +Pursuit

3&3 3-4 (13) Taylor Pass Middle (Hester) 5-man -51 (Tackle)

1&10 3-4 (29) Carter Pass Middle (Olsen) 5, OLB Blitz -Coverage

1&10 3-4 (8) Farrior Pass Middle (Davis) 5, R.S.Overload

2&2 3-4 (6) Clark Pass Left (Olsen) 6, OLB & 57.

1&10 3-4 (--) None Pass Right (Hester) 4-man +92, +91

2&10 3-4 (2) Timmons Run Middle (Forte) 5-man

3&8 2-4-5 (7) Clark Pass Middle (Knox TD) 4-man -23 (Coverage)

Total Field Position Change: From Chicago 28 to Pittsburgh GL; 72 yards total. Defense on field for 5:03.

Drive 8. Starting Point: Chicago 33 yard line. 3:18, Fourth Quarter.

D 'n D Formation Total Yardage Tackler(s) Play Type Rushers Notes

1&10 3-4 (12) Harrison Screen Left (Forte) 4-man ++92

1&10 3-4 (5) Gay Pass Left (Knox) 4-man

2&5 3-4 (1) Harrison Run Right (Forte) 4-man +Pursuit

3&4 3-4 (5) Taylor Pass Left (Hester) 3-man

1&10 3-4 (4) Harrison Run Middle (Forte) 4-man 26 blitz; +92

2&6 3-4 (3) Keisel Run Right (Forte) 4-man 26 blitz

3&3 3-4 (1) Harrison Run Left (Forte) 4-man

4&2 ST FG (44)

Total Field Position Change: From Chicago 33 to Pittsburgh 26; 57 yards total. Defense on field for 3:03.

Observations:

It has occurred to me after watching the 2 games this year the Steelers have no true Dime defense. There are, at most, 3 CBs on the field, and if there are 4 WRs the nearest man slides over, attempts a quick jam, and then jumps back into their respective zone. This tells us a few things: first, Coach LeBeau must not have much faith in the corners outside the top 3. Second, unless the Steeler D starts to get sacks, they are going to get picked apart when opponents spread the field, as they are constantly "down" in personnel. Not a good sign, especially with Troy Polamalu out. His speed, instincts, and general knowledge of the game were used to cover up the weaknesses in the middle of the field and with the "deficit" in personnel. The other option the Steelers have used is sliding a Safety down in man coverage with that odd WR (or split-out TE), which, well, Tyrone Carter in this game. Just a step too slow.
Speaking on pressure, it was there most of the game, but there was only one recorded sack (Aaron Smiths' near the goal-line). Harrison is beyond words in terms of beating his man/men; multiple times in the game he single-handedly collapsed the pocket, caused Cutler to roll to his right, caused Cutler to dump it off quickly, or a combination of the three. I'm not sure I 100% agree with the Roughing the Passer they called on him when the Steelers had the Bears pinned deep in the First Quarter, but what can you do. His presence alone was also directly responsible for a key third-down stop early in the 3rd Quarter. On multiple occasions the Steelers blitzed both Outside 'Backers along with the 3 Linemen rushing; from now on I'll refer to the term "stab" when labeling this, as I'm cramped for space.
Incorporating Harrison in what I'm about to say, I will be the first to admit I'm not a fan of the Steelers re-signing LBs who are into their early-to-mid 30's, but so far Farrior and Harrison have been worth their money. Harrison is a wrecking ball who takes out the left side of the line while Farrior is the leader of the defense and, after studying him, has one of the quickest down-hill steps I've ever seen; it's like he's shot out of a cannon. While not a linebacker, add Aaron Smith to the list of 30-somethings who are amazingly good at what they do. Let's pray the defense doesn't lose any of these guys.
Although we didn't see the 0-6-5 this game as we did in the Tennessee game, there were many doses of the 1-5-5, along with some of the 2-4-5. Often times Keisel will be in a 2-point stance until just prior to the snap, at which point he will take a 3-point stance. This happened numerous times yesterday afternoon; however, this isn't the only difference between the 2-4-5 and the 1-5-5. Most of the time the 1-5-5 is trying to achieve a sense of confusion, as the 5 linebackers are moving around, giving different looks, and generally overload-blitzing one side of the line. Keisel is labeled as a 'backer here, as I've seen him drop into coverage often. Perhaps not as well-known as his defensive teammates, whether by production or hype, he is one of the key cogs in the unit as a whole.
Overall a tough game, as the team not only lost but was limited to what they could do defensively because of the loss of Troy Polamalu. Most of the blitzing was overloads with soft zones behind it, and Cutler had the alertness and arm strength to get the ball out quickly when he recognized or thought he felt a blitz coming. Ron Turner also called a good game, as he anticipated Dick LeBeau's blitzes and had a few well-timed screens and draws thrown into the mix. It will be interesting to see what the next evolution of this defense is with Troy out and opponents seemingly having Harrison and Woodleys antidote.
Ratings?

Ratings.

Name, Game Rating (Season Rating)

Harrison +10 (+10)

Smith +4 (+7)

Keisel +3 (+3)

Timmons +3 (+3)

Hampton +2 (+2)

Woodley +2 (+3)

Clark +1 (-1)

Farrior 0 (+2)

Carter 0 (0)

Gay -1 (0)

Taylor -1 (0)

Polamalu N/A (+2)

Fox N/A (-1)

Pursuit +3 (+3)

Pressure +2 (+2)

Contain +1 (+1)

Tackle -1 (-1)

Coverage -1 (0)

Look for a post diagramming the 2-4-5 and 1-5-5 in the near future.

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Comments

I didn't read most of it because there were to many #

but you get a rec for that much research and most of the D played well except for Carter and Gay but Harrison and woodley got pressure just about every blitz they went on and Ike is one of the best coners in the game and Farrior still has it even though he is getting up in years he still showed some explosiveness and speed on a blitz were he about broke jay cutler in half I think. Side note the one good play Tyrone had was when he about knocked Greg Olsen out along the sideline on a long catch I thought he killed olsen or himself with that hit was the hardest hit I have ever seen

"Here-to-for called Crabass, from the combination of Crabtree and jackass" thank you WyoFan for that little piece of awsome

by WVPiratesfan on Sep 21, 2009 6:15 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

It has occurred to me after watching the 2 games this year the Steelers have no true Dime defense. There are, at most, 3 CBs on the field..

i was gonna do a post about the same thing

by t1mmy10 on Sep 21, 2009 6:56 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

We put in a 3rd safety on the field in the dime and Troy plays up like a CB. Carter gets a lot of playing time in this defense, and it’s more to use Troy’s skills better than it is an indictment of the 4th CB. I don’t know if they’ve changed that with Troy out, but that’s usually how Dick rolls.

charity standing orders

by BadMaafala on Sep 21, 2009 7:10 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

With Troy out

They’ve been sliding players (whoever is nearest, usually an OLB) over the receiver and then playing zone after a bump at the line. Hard to say from only one game, but it doesn’t look like it’s working thus far.

by Romain El 82 on Sep 21, 2009 8:11 PM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

yeah, and THAT probably has to do with the lack of a solid #4 cb

by t1mmy10 on Sep 27, 2009 12:18 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs

Good post

Gay has to pick it up, Carter is what he is, but you are right about opponents seemingly having Harrison and Woodleys antidote.

by mikemex on Sep 21, 2009 9:04 PM EDT reply actions 0 recs

Let's do some math...

1. Ike Taylor
2. William Gay
3. Deshea Townsend
4. Keiwan Ratliff
5. Keenan Lewis
6. Joe Burnett

So, we’ve got 3 CB’s that do what? If they’re only around for kick coverage, bring back Anthony Madison. Makes no sense that Ryan Mundy and Ty Carter are on the field trying to cover receivers that can run a sub-4.4 and three true cornerbacks are on the sideline.

by pghnorthside on Sep 22, 2009 12:23 AM EDT reply actions 0 recs

I believe

Burnett will get more time as the season progresses, as he looked good in the preseason. My guess would be they want to bring the rookies along slowly, ala LaMarr Woodley a few seasons ago.

by Romain El 82 on Sep 22, 2009 1:36 AM EDT up reply actions 0 recs