Steelers sticking with OLB rotation
The Steelers believe first-round draft choice Bud Dupree will be part of a four-player rotation at the two outside linebacker positions during the 2015 season.
Steelers outside linebacker Jarvis Jones had two quarterback sacks in Pittsburgh’s first three games of the 2014 season.
PITTSBURGH – From the days of Greg Lloyd and Kevin Greene, to Joey Porter and Jason Gildon and then Clark Haggans, to James Harrison and LaMarr Woodley, the Steelers had some fantastic outside linebacker duos the past two decades.
They played well in pass coverage. They stopped the run. They rushed the passer.
They were so good they rarely, if ever, came off the field.
But in recent seasons, the Steelers used a committee approach to its outside linebacker position, rotating players through its two outside spots.
And the results were not great.
After recording 34 sacks in 2013, the Steelers had 33 last year.
It’s a big reason why the Steelers selected athletic outside linebacker Bud Dupree in the first round of last week’s draft.
Much like when they took Jarvis Jones in the first round in 2013 and rotated him with Jason Worilds, the Steelers are figuring on a rotation at both outside linebacker positions next season.
Despite using two first-round draft picks on the position in the past three years, the Steelers aren’t thinking about a dynamic duo just yet. They’re hoping for a fantastic foursome.
On the right side, Jones and Harrison, who turned 37 Monday, will rotate while Dupree, who had 23 1/2 career sacks at Kentucky, will do the same with Arthur Moats on the left side.
“The four guys who we dress on game days are all going to play,” said Porter, now the outside linebackers coach after Keith Butler was promoted to defensive coordinator. “I really think it will help those guys be more effective, limiting their snaps.”
That means somebody has to tell Harrison when to come off the field.
Porter said that won’t be a problem. He already had that conversation with the 2008 NFL Defensive Player of the Year when the Steelers re-signed him to a two-year contract this offseason.
“He knows where he is (in his career). I know where he is,” said Porter, who played ahead of Harrison early in his career. “We have that relationship. I told him already, the James Harrison (of before) is over. He’s going to play his role and is going to be effective.”
Worilds, who surprisingly retired in the offseason, and defensive end Cam Heyward tied for the team lead in sacks last season with 7 1/2 each while Harrison had 5 1/2 despite being signed a month into the season after Jones suffered a wrist injury in a win at Carolina.
As a group, the Steelers’ outside linebackers had 19 sacks last season, with Jones having two in the first three games before his injury.
When Jones returned late in the year, he split time with Harrison.
“I think Jarvis has had a good offseason,” Porter said of Jones, who worked out with Harrison and some of the other linebackers in Arizona this spring.
“He’s getting stronger. He’s doing some things he knows he needs to get better for this year. He’s not naive to know what he’s done so far. It doesn’t meet his standards, and he knows there’s a lot more in there. I thought Jarvis was playing good last year until he got hurt.
“I still think he’s one of the better linebackers in the league and he will be that. It just hasn’t happened yet.”
If it happens this year and Dupree is the kind of draft steal the Steelers believe he is, Pittsburgh could soon have another solid outside linebacker duo.
No matter which linebacker gets to the quarterback, Porter knows they must do it more often.
“You can never have enough pass rushers, especially the way the NFL is being played now,” Porter said. “When I played, it was more about being able to stop the run and play both. The way they’re playing the game now, it’s a track meet out there. You have to put pressure on the quarterback. I feel like if we had done that last year, we would’ve been a little better. I think we’re addressing some of the problems that we had.”