Sports

The Morning After: The Steelers’ defense has reached elite territory

Nairavoice · Oct 26, 2026 · 4 min read

Entering the 2026 season, the Pittsburgh Steelers defense felt like it was facing its expiration date. Like a hair band from the ’80s trying to remain relevant in the 2000s – either adapt or be left behind and forgotten.

Pittsburgh’s defense had become more nostalgia act than on-field production. Sure, several future Hall of Famers are on the roster, but their numbers in 2025 were rough. They finished the 2025 season 20th in defensive EPA per play and 28th in total yards allowed. The never-changing defensive philosophy was severely hindering any chance for a motley crew Steelers defense to find any level of consistent play, and made it easy for the league’s best offenses to pick them apart.

Which is why when the Steelers hired Mike McCarthy in January, many rolled their eyes at the thought of this band going on tour again. But with the hiring of Patrick Graham, Pittsburgh got with the times. The sound changed. The vocals improved. Are these music puns doing anything for you? Yeah, me either, I’m done with them. I did a lot of completely useless ’80s music research purely for the bit. Would a Duran Duran reference to their 2004 album Astronaut save it?

You get the point. The Steelers adapted and they evolved, which is something they needed to if they wanted to make any sort of noise during the 2026 season.

Through seven weeks, the Steelers are tied for sixth in defensive EPA per play. They’re also allowing the sixth-fewest yards per game. DVOA wise, the Steelers rank seventh in the NFL, and they are second in DVOA against the run, trailing only the Jacksonville Jaguars. And while the entire season has seen the Steelers’ defensive pendulum swing to the other side, the last three games in particular have been especially terrific.

Since Week 5, the Steelers have allowed just three touchdowns, which is tied with the Minnesota Vikings for the fewest in the league over that span. Their defensive success rate ranks third in the league, and their success rate against the run is the NFL’s best over that span, nearly a full two percentage points better than the second-place Chicago Bears. Passing wise, they are giving up just 5.67 yards per attempt during this three-game win streak, and they’ve picked off three passes compared to just two touchdown passes.

This is an elite unit by just about every measure there is to offer. And if the offense can continue its own level of success (eighth in EPA per play, fourth in rush success rate since Week 5), this is a team that can hang with anyone.

It’s the morning after game day, and don’t look now, but the Steelers are good.

Big Patrick Queen game

I don’t think there is a player more scrutinized by Steelers fans than Patrick Queen, but he had one of his best games as a Steeler on Sunday. Queen led the team with 10 tackles, one of which was a sack that would end up being the final play of the game for the Saints’ offense. He was credited with three run stops and seven impact plays, per Sumer Sports, which was the second-highest of any linebacker in Week 7. Only Blake Cashman of the Minnesota Vikings had more – a really good outing from No. 6.

Jaylen Warren continues his fantastic season

I’m going to do a stand-alone piece on this because his play is more than deserving of it. So if this seems a little bare bones, don’t worry. Warren had 101 yards on the ground and added 36 yards as a receiver. The tear that he is on right now is pretty special, and I’ll have more on it later.

Quick hitters

The third-down defense was obviously an issue. Can’t allow a team to convert on 50 percent of their third downs.
After a Hall of Fame performance agains the Bucs, Jalen Ramsey had a rough outing. Per Sumer Sports, he gave up nine receptions on 10 targets for 78 yards and a touchdown.
Payton Wilson had a strong outing with six tackles, two run stuffs, and the interception in the red zone that completely swung the game.
T.J. Watt is firmly back in the elite pass rusher conversation. He had a sack – and what should have been a forced fumble and recovery that was overturned. Nevertheless, he is fourth in the NFL in sacks and fifth in pressure to sack percentage among all players who have played 100 snaps.
The 2-1 carry ratio for Warren and Rico Dowdle is a good one. Warren finished with 18 carries to Dowdle’s nine. Overall, Warren had 21 touches to Dowdle’s 15, with the latter adding a very solid 86 yards from scrimmage.

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