I believe that Sunday was a breakthrough for the Steelers defense. We finally witnessed what Pittsburgh’s defense can look like when all of their components are healthy: that means a healthy Cameron Heyward, Stephon Tuitt, Bud Dupree, T.J. Watt, and Ryan Shazier.

Over the course of this season and even going back into 2016, the defense has always been missing someone from the starting lineup. Even in Sunday’s game, the defense was without starting safety Mike Mitchell (replaced by J.J. Wilcox).

At times, the defense took over Sunday’s game. And more specifically, two players really took over and dominated: Ryan Shazier and Mike Hilton.

Now, that won’t downplay the roles that others played (such as Cam Heyward’s strip and fumble recovery) but I noticed that Hilton and Shazier were everywhere making plays. (Shazier was even around for Heyward’s play.)

Early Third Quarter

The Ravens were set up on their own doorstep, receiving the ball within their own red zone following a crazy interception call which was made via instant replay early in the third quarter.

The Steelers defense took the field and rose to the challenge, shutting down the Ravens.

On this play, Baltimore QB Joe Flacco looks to find former Steelers WR Mike Wallace but is shut down by the hard-hitting Shazier.

Fans are already familiar with Shazier’s name and his playmaking ability, but they may not be accustomed to Mike Hilton’s. We’ve been signing Hilton’s praises since he arrived to Steelers training camp as an undrafted free agent this Summer. A teammate of former second round pick Senquez Golson during their days at Ole Miss, many felt that if Hilton had better stats or great physical attributes, he may have been as highly touted as a prospect as Golson was coming out of college.

Now it’s starting to show as Hilton receives more snaps as the Steelers slot corner.

The very next play following the pass breakup by Shazier above, Hilton comes off of the edge with a corner blitz. Ravens RR Austin Howard tries to compensate for Hilton’s speed, as the DB forces the pocket to break down and Flacco to move.

Hilton’s persistence pays off as he sacks the quarterback and forces fourth down.

The Ravens settled for a 42-yard field goal.

Steelers defense takes over in the fourth quarter

Pittsburgh’s defense took a while to warm up because they weren’t on the field. The Steelers offense possessed the ball for over 19 minutes in the first half, which carried over to over nine and a half minutes of control in the third quarter as well.

For two-thirds of the game, the Steelers offense had the ball two-thirds of the total time played. Naturally, as the defense remained on the field they got into a rhythm. That rhythm was missed on the previous play by Ryan Shazier, who made the best defensive opportunity possible on Ravens TE Benjamin Watson, who used his sure hands to haul in an 11-yard pass.

Shazier would get revenge on the very next play, intercepting a pass which was again intended for Watson.

Feel free to rewind this several times to appreciate Shazier’s athleticism in not only covering Watson but turning to find and catch the football.

Unfortunately, the Steelers offense would stall again, as the Ravens forced a three-and-out, putting the onus back on Pittsburgh’s defense to stop them.

With 9:33 remaining and down ten points, Joe Flacco abandoned the run and started throwing the ball around the field. He completed five straight passes before the Ravens offense stalled on two plays, then committed a false start penalty.

On 2nd-and-19, Flacco scans the field and finds Jeremy Maclin for a seven-yard gain, who is covered by Hilton with Shazier in the area.

The coverage here is excellent and again highlights how the Steelers passing defense was on point Sunday. There’s not much else Hilton or Shazier could do on this play, and Pittsburgh was content with holding the Ravens for a third-and-long.

Setting up 3rd-and-12, Flacco is forced out of the pocket by the Steelers four-man rush. The secondary holds as Hilton is able to make a huge play breaking up the pass.

Now 4th-and-12, the Ravens have no choice but to go for the first down as time winds down in the game.

Once again, Shazier and Hilton are all over the play, as Hilton passes off his man and is in position to catch the tipped pass that Shazier hits with an excellent read on the play and an even more impressive vertical leap.

Conclusion

What does all of this mean for the Steelers defense going forward?

While the Ravens offense isn’t a particularly strong one, the team rebounded against the run and was able to shut down the pass. For another week, they were able to consistently pressure the quarterback and create turnovers.

While I’m also trying to pump my brakes on the Mike Hilton excitement, I must say seeing him step up as he did on Sunday gave me the jitters that T.J. Watt did during Week 1’s game against the Browns. This is the type of play that head coach Mike Tomlin expects when he talks about “splash” and it appears that the Steelers now have several players, possibly enough to fill the entire defensive side of the ball, capable of producing big plays.