Facing scrutiny heading into Sunday’s game, the Pittsburgh Steelers‘ defense stepped up and helped the team defeat the Indianapolis Colts.
And even though they still gave up over 20 points, 22 to be exact, and 332 yards, a franchise defensive legend liked what he saw during Pittsburgh’s 34-22 win.
Harrison Praises Defense for Stopping Jonathan Taylor
“The defense held that man Jonathan Taylor to 45 yards on 15 rushes. That’s what it’s supposed to look like. That’s what you do to a top running back,” said Harrison on Monday’s episode of the Deebo and Joe podcast. Jonathan Taylor, who ran for 1,585 yards last season and has 398 so far this year, only managed to produce 45 for an average of 3.0 yards per attempt in his team’s loss in Pittsburgh.
But Harrison wasn’t only impressed that the defense held one of the best running back’s in football in check. Pittsburgh forced Indianapolis to kick five field goals, preventing touchdowns even when they would reaching scoring range.
“And when they get down there, stand up, stiffen up. Don’t let them get touchdowns. Hold them to field goals. Good job, defense. That pass defense still a problem. Rush and coverage work together, so that means we’ve got to get more pressure and we’ve got to cover better.”
Harrison Still Has Concerns About the Pass Defense
With that said, Harrison is far from satisfied. And while the run defense did their job, he still views the secondary and the pass defense as a work in progress.
“That pass defense is still a problem. Rush and coverage work together, so that means we’ve got to get more pressure and we’ve got to cover better. We still need to clean up our tackling. But I’m very optimistic that things can get better,” he added to his rant.
Overall, a defense led by veterans like Cam Heyward and T.J. Watt has still allowed opponents to surpass 20 points in every game through their Week 6 matchup. Statically, teams are averaging 324.2 yards against the Steelers’ defense, which ranks as the 13th worst in the NFL.
Fortunately for the Steelers, they will face a struggling Tampa Bay Buccaneers‘ offense next week at 1:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, Oct. 18.
James Harrison Shares Candid Assessment of Steelers’ Defense