3 reasons Steelers showed potential to be special in Week 1

The Steelers completed a stunning upset against the Bills in Week 1. Here’s what I saw in this win that gives me the feeling this group can be special.

The Pittsburgh Steelers did something few had thought would be possible in Week 1, and that was beat the high-powered Bills in Buffalo.

I’m not going to say it was a perfect game by any means, however, as the Steelers gutted out a tough one against what is projected to be a powerhouse in the NFL this season.

It is important to recognize Pittsburgh going to have to win games like that in 2021 with the hardest schedule in the NFL.

First reason the Steelers showed potential was ‘Blitzburgh’

Generally, teams that can apply pressure on opposing quarterbacks are going to have great defenses. What was astonishing is how often Pittsburgh didn’t blitz in Week 1. Per Pro Football Focus, the Steelers played 74 of their 79 defensive snaps in nickel or dime sets. Pittsburgh relied on a four-man rush a ton in this game, and Bills quarterback Josh Allen was reeling.

T.J. Watt, Melvin Ingram, Alex Highsmith, and Cam Heyward will be the strongest group of four pass-rushers in the league this season. Adding Stephon Tuitt into the mix later in the year will only make this front that much more special.

Pittsburgh’s defense generated a whopping 19 pressures on Allen in Week 1, and he attempted 51 passes. That means the Steelers pressured Allen on just over 37 percent of his passing plays. Again, relying on mostly a four-man rush to do that was incredible.

Factor in the fact that Devin Bush and Joe Schobert were called upon again and again to defend the run with little help elsewhere only excited me even further. Joe Schobert was a heck of a bargain at his cost, and as he acclimates to the system better this defense will be better than it was in 2020.

Provided the defense stays healthy, it has the potential to be an absolutely legendary defense by the time the season is over.