If we were doing word association and I gave you Pittsburgh Steelers, the first word that comes to mind for many would be “defense”. Historically speaking the Steelers are a team built around a stifling defense and the front office has made a point to try and find NFL players who relish that sort of mentality. We already did this exercise for the offense, now it’s time to give the defense a turn and see how the Steelers starting 11 match up.
1. Troy Polamalu, S- If you are making a list of the best defensive players in the league, you can’t get far before you would have to list Polamalu. If you were just making a list of safetys, you might not have to get to No. 2. As infuriating as Polamalu’s play is at times; as it’s high risk/high reward and lends itself to injuries, there’s no doubt that this defense is a whole different animal when Polamalu is on the field.
2. Lamarr Woodley, LB-Woodley almost certainly does not get the pub that he deserves. He’s the ideal 3-4 rush OLB for the Steelers system, and his ability to play the run as well as rush the quarterback fits so well with what defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau wants to do. He’s relentless and explosive and for my money one of the 5 best rush linebackers in the NFL.
3. Lawrence Timmons, LB-It took a little longer than expected for Timmons to get up to speed, but now we are really starting to see what made Timmons a first round pick. I’d like to see him a little more consistent and get closer to his 2009 numbers again, but in terms of talent, Timmons certainly deserves a spot this high.
4. Ike Taylor, CB- Taylor is probably the most consistent piece of the Steelers secondary in the past 6 or 7 seasons since he was inserted into the starting lineup. A former 4th round pick, Taylor has become a physical and aggressive cover player who can defend the run as well. If he only had better ball skills, he’d have double digit interceptions every season.
5. James Harrison, LB- There was a time not too long ago when Harrison was the best defensive player not only on the Steelers but in the league. At this point he’s an aggressive rush linebacker who’s 34 years old and labeled as a cheater by the league so his style of play costs his team and his wallet. Still plenty in the tank but at this point he’s a compliment to Woodley, not the other way around.
6. Brett Keisel, DE- If Taylor is the anchor of the back 4, Keisel is the anchor of the front 3. The Beard may never rack up huge statistics, but even with all the young talent at defensive end on this team, he’s the most consistent and productive defensive end they have. His days may be numbered, but for now, I love still having him on the line.
7. Steve McClendon, DT-We’ve all loved having Casey Hampton fill the middle of the Steel Curtain defense but we have to accept that his best days are well behind him, and this franchise is moving forward. The steelers drafted a real gem of a future NT in Alameda Ta’amu in the 2012 NFL draft, but all McClendon has done is step up and be much more than a fill in.
8. Ryan Clark, S-A great compliment to Polamalu in the defensive secondary. He doesn’t nothing great, but does everything well. This is a position that could certainly use an upgrade but for now Clark serves his purpose.
9. Ziggy Hood, DE-I think when I re-shuffle this list mid-season, Hood will be higher. For now, I just haven’t seen enough of him. I’m philosophically opposed to drafting a 3-4 defensive end in the first round, and since he was, I expect a lot from him.
10. Keenan Lewis, CB-This is a guess. I could have easily put in Cortez Allen in this spot, and the ranking would not have changed. The Steelers secondary was an area of weakness last seasons and that is going to rear it’s ugly head again this year. Lewis is very much an average player, and a weak link on a great defense.
11. Larry Foote, LB-Speaking of weak links, we finish up with Foote. He’s a journeyman player who’s been on and off this team, but like a boomerang finds his way back. I blame the Steelers for Foote being a starter, because they’ve done little to upgrade the position.
I plan to update this list once at mid-season and again at the end, so obviously things will change. We could see 3 or 4 totally new players on the list, or even a new number 1 if Timmons has the season I expect of him.
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I agree with your rankings for the most part, but Ryan Clark should be higher. He is as integral to this defense as Troy Polamulu, as exhibited in the playoff game against Denver last year. Also, I would recommend proof-reading your posts before publishing them as I found a few grammatical errors, which is unacceptable.
Finally, I’m not going to argue with putting Larry Foote at the bottom of this list, but he deserves more credit than you are giving him, he was (at the very least) a solid starter for the Steelers before he went to Detroit and will be a serviceable professional once again this upcoming season (and not a weak link).
I am not sure that what happened in Denver last year is more of a credit to Ryan Clark as it was just a further indictment of how average the Steelers secondary really is. There’s nothing to say if Clark is on the field, they win that game.
As for Foote, I don’t have to give him any credit at all. He’s been able to be surrounded by exceptional talent at linebacker with the Steelers and that’s allowed him to be successful. He’s been the worst linebacker among this starting unit for awhile and I’d love to see them make moves to get better there.