5 Steelers who have played surprisingly well during 2020

Vince Williams

Vince Williams is a Steelers persona that is hard to dislike. The hard-nosed, “smack you in the mouth” style is a throwback to more physical defenses of the early 2000s, but he has seemingly taken his play to the next level this season. While he looked like a player that had begun regressing the previous two years, the 2020 version of Williams has been shot out of a cannon, helping lead a feared run defense and rivaling some of his best personal stats.

The veteran has played 71 percent of the Steelers defensive snaps so far. Considering his affinity to stop the run and his noted struggles in coverage (he allowed a QB rating of 121.4 last year), it was surprising to see Williams playing as often as he could be considered a weak link on coverage plays. That said, Williams has become a force at pressuring the QB, almost serving as an additional lineman instead of being a more traditional roaming ILB.

His two sacks and eight tackles for a loss are incredible for only three games. Even better, you can constantly see him shooting the gap and getting into the backfield when he does blitz, showcasing his clear talent at getting after the QB. Williams has little competition for his spot as well, considering there is no real player that could steal snaps away from him. His 2020 has started with a bang, and it could easily end up being his best season as a Steeler by the end of the year.