3 Steelers who will see increased roles in Week 9 vs. Cowboys
By Tommy Jaggi
DT Isaiah Buggs
The biggest beneficiary of Tyson Alualu’s knee injury that could hold him out a few weeks is defensive tackle, Isaiah Buggs. Buggs stepped in when Alualu went down last week and earned 34 defensive snaps, according to Pro Football Reference – nearly doubling his previous season-high.
This week, he shouldn’t have any trouble topping that output against the Dallas Cowboys. With Alualu’s injury, Pittsburgh is starting to become razor-thin along the interior defensive line, and Buggs will be in line for big usage this week.
As a fill-in for Alualu in Week 8 against the Ravens, Buggs wasn’t without his struggles. He was part of a defensive line that allowed a total of 265 rushing yards on the ground – most of which came in the second half of the game when Buggs was in the lineup. Considering the Steelers surrendered just 68 rushing yards per game prior to this contest, it doesn’t give us a lot of confidence.
Buggs has a bit of a spark as a pass-rusher, but his run defense and overall ability to hold up at the point of attack are in question. It will be interesting to see how he fares against Ezekiel Elliott and a banged-up Cowboys offensive line.