The Steelers secondary shows well in defensive Pro Football Focus grades

The Pittsburgh Steelers began their 2022 NFL season with their first preseason matchup on Saturday night at Acrisure stadium against the Seattle Seahawks. Although there ware a number of players who did not appear in the game for the Steelers, there were plenty who got their opportunity to show what they could bring to the Steelers this season. While it was encouraging to see the offense put up 32 points, it was also discouraging to see the defense squander a 14-point lead and give up 25 points.

But how did the individual players grade out?

For this exercise, we will be looking at the player grades from Pro Football Focus (PFF) for the Steelers first preseason performance. Before going any further, I must give the typical disclaimer that PFF grades are subjective. While some people rely on them heavily, others are quite skeptical of the process in which they are determined. It is completely up to each person as to how much stock they put into PFF’s grades. For me, I often look at the grades to see if my own “eye test” lines up with what others viewed as how a player performed. If nothing more, the grades create a discussion about how accurate, or inaccurate, they are each week.

Instead of looking at the entire team at once, we break up the scores into offense and defense. First up is the defense. Included will be all the players who played at least one defensive snap and the total snap counts for each player will be included. For reference sake, the Steelers played 60 snaps on defense in their first preseason game.

Overall

Top 5 (regardless of position)

DT Donovan Jeter: 90.5 (6 snaps)
S Tre Norwood: 82.8 (47 snaps)
ILB Myles Jack: 81.4 (8 snaps)
DT Khalil Davis: 74.7 (9 snaps)
CB Ahkello Witherspoon: 73.6 (6 snaps)

Bottom 5 (regardless of position)

DT Henry Mondeaux: 43.6 (28 snaps)
ILB Buddy Johnson: 42.8 (45 snaps)
ILB Devin Bush: 34.2 (15 snaps)
DT Carlos Davis: 31.7 (27 snaps)
DT Chris Wormley: 30.1 (11 snaps)

Defensive Front Five

DT Donovan Jeter: 90.5 (6 snaps)
DT Khalil Davis: 74.7 (9 snaps)
OLB Hamlicar Rashed Jr.: 64.8 (18 snaps)
DT Isaiahh Loudermilk: 60.6 (28 snaps)
DT DeMarvin Leal: 57.2 (26 snaps)
OLB Ron’Dell Carter: 55.4 (13 snaps)
DT Doug Costin: 52.5 (12 snaps)
OLB Tuzar Skipper: 51.8 (22 snaps)
OLB Derrek Tuszka: 50.3 (34 snaps)
OLB Delontae Scott: 43.7 (33 snaps)
DT Henry Mondeaux: 43.6 (28 snaps)
DT Carlos Davis: 31.7 (27 snaps)
DT Chris Wormley: 30.1 (11 snaps)

Although the Steelers had two players from the defensive line with the top five scores, including Donovan Jeter with the top defensive mark for the game, they still had three players in the bottom five. In looking at players expected to make the roster coming into this game, Isaiahh Loudermilk was the only one who scored above the standard 60.0 in which PFF starts off their grades. The fact that only four players scored above this mark with nine coming in below does not speak well for the defensive front five in their first game action.

Inside Linebackers

ILB Myles Jack: 81.4 (8 snaps)
ILB Mark Robinson: 54.0 (32 snaps)
ILB Robert Spillane: 45.5 (20 snaps)
ILB Buddy Johnson: 42.8 (45 snaps)
ILB Devin Bush: 34.2 (15 snaps)

In this group, there is Myles Jack and there is everybody else. My initial eye test told me the inside linebackers were completely different when Jack was in the game, and his score reflects that. Unfortunately, the rest of the group fell well below the line. Even with Mark Robinson making the biggest splash play on the defensive side of the ball late in the game, it only helped recover some from where he had struggles early. For those who had concerns about this position group coming into the season, Saturday night probably did not help things despite the encouraging play from Jack.

Defensive Backs

S Tre Norwood: 82.8 (47 snaps)
CB Ahkello Witherspoon: 73.6 (6 snaps)
CB Levi Wallace: 70.9 (23 snaps)
CB James Pierre: 69.9 (34 snaps)
CB Cam Sutton: 67.3 (15 snaps)
CB Arthur Maulet: 66.9 (25 snaps)
S Terrell Edmunds: 66.1 (15 snaps)
S Damontae Kazee: 62.7 (24 snaps)
CB Chris Steele: 62.4 (2 snaps)
CB Justin Layne: 58.6 (17 snaps)
CB Linden Stephens: 55.0 (15 snaps)
CB Carlins Platel: 51.3 (15 snaps)
S Donovan Steiner: 44.0 (35 snaps)

In looking at the various position groups, it was the defensive secondary that brought the most consistent scores. With nine of the 13 players coming in above 60.0, it was a strong performance on the back end of the defense. Not only did Tre Norwood have the best score of the group, and the second best score on the defense, he did so while playing the most snaps of any defender. Even a player such as a Damontae Kazee, who fell in the second half of scores for this position group, still scored in the top 12 out of 31 players for the overall defense.

So, what do you think of the above grades? Do they pass the eye test? Let us know your thoughts on the Steelers’ defensive grades in the comments below.