The Pittsburgh Steelers defense didn’t have the best game Sunday against the Indianapolis Colts. But the unit did two things very well.
First, the Steelers didn’t allow Jonathan Taylor to run for many yards. Secondly, Pittsburgh’s defense stiffened in the red zone. The Colts scored only one touchdown on three red zone drives. Indianapolis also had three other drives into Steelers territory end in just two field goals.
Steelers All-Pro defensive lineman Cameron Heyward pointed to Indianapolis’s drives stalling in their territory as a major key in the game. And for the team’s defense to do that, Heyward gave credit to one of the team’s rookies making his debut Sunday — Gabriel Rubio.
Heyward called Rubio out by name in his postgame press conference after the 34-22 victory in Week 5.
“Hats off to a lot of our guys. When you have these long drives, we get other guys to step up. Gabriel Rubio, Keeanu Benton, Yahya Black. There’s just a multitude of guys who stepped up in those instances,” said Heyward. “I think just really hit home getting off the field when we can.
“Especially in the red zone. Them scoring only one touchdown was huge.”
The Steelers selected Rubio at No. 210 overall in the sixth round of the 2026 NFL Draft. While Rubio made the Steelers roster after the preseason, he was a healthy scratch in the first four weeks of the regular season.
Rubio dressed for the first time Sunday. He finished the contest with three tackles.
Steelers’ Cameron Heyward Gives Day 3 Rookie Call out After NFL Debut