Defense coming together with 'great mix' of young, old playmakers

When someone looks at the Steelers' defense this season, they'll see an established group of playmakers, including Cam Heyward, T.J. Watt, Minkah Fitzpatrick, DeShon Elliott and others. However, they'll also see a young and upcoming group of players helping the Steelers reach a new level on the defensive side of the ball.

Over the last few games, Beanie Bishop has picked off three passes, Nick Herbig has returned from an injury and tallied a forced fumble on one of the best running backs in the NFL and Joey Porter Jr. has become one of the premier cover corners in the league. Payton Wilson also recently came up with a once-in-a-lifetime type of interception and is currently fourth on the team in tackles despite playing almost half the snaps as the players in front of him. Then, there's Keeanu Benton, who has become a mover and shaker on the interior of the defensive line.

Let's not forget Herbig and Porter Jr. blowing up the biggest play of the game against the Ravens:

These types of plays have been happening all season and are allowing the Steelers' defense to take off. They currently have the league's fourth-best rushing defense, second-best scoring defense, second-best turnover-differential and are tied for the third most turnovers in the league with 19 (11 interceptions, 8 fumbles).

The Steelers have always been known for their defense and it's because they consistently transition in groups of young players to play and practice alongside future hall-of-famers like Watt and Heyward. It's one generation teaching the next, which makes a recipe for success.

"It's good because it gives us a good mix, it gives us guys with a lot of speed and energy," Teryl Austin said. "We've obviously got some older, I won't call them older, but older guys, veteran guys who have a lot of experience, and I think they kind of feed off of each other. It's been a really great mix. You know, going forward at some point, you hope those young guys become the guys that they are learning from right now."

That's where it seems like it's headed. While Porter, Bishop and Benton have been playing a lot of snaps, Wilson and Herbig have filled in sparingly. But, when they do, they make their snaps count. Despite only playing in six games, Herbig has tallied 2.5 sacks, three TFLs and two forced fumbles, which trails only Watt. Wilson has recorded 42 tackles, one TFL and one interception, which uhh ... yea, you just have to watch it:

I asked Watt what the younger players have done for the defense this year and while their contributions have been massive, he said it's not just their play on the field that has stood out.

"When those guys are in the important meetings, the extra meetings, it’s not just the minimum requirement, those guys are trying to learn, trying to ask good questions," Watt said. "Like, Payton asked me what he should do on a short week. Guys are asking the right questions and it’s awesome to see when those things are applied from the meeting room onto the practice field and practice into the game field and that’s what you’re starting to see."

It also shows how far this defense has come since the beginning of the season. The defensive breakdowns against the Colts and Cowboys seem like a distant memory as the Steelers have turned a corner defensively and it's partly because of the improvement of the young players. 

Bishop was picked on early in the season, but the undrafted free agent was able to buckle down and has since been a strong presence in the secondary. Wilson recently had his role diminished and recorded his two lowest snap counts in the past two games. However, he still kept his head down and prepared for his role so he'd be ready when it mattered.

"It's just a testament to the great vets we have around here," Donte Jackson told me. "It's a top-down led group, like Russ on the offensive side and the way he has guys doing everything they need to do. You got a list of guys on this side of the ball that just understand where this thing can go if everybody is on board and bought in. That's really what you've been seeing."

This group isn't fully healthy either. When Alex Highsmith and Cory Trice Jr. return to the mix, the Steelers will have the depth to go along with their talent and could even take another step forward as the season stretches into the latter part of the season. Only time will tell.