Expectations were high for the Pittsburgh Steelers defense going into the 2025 season. This is far and away the most expensive defense in the NFL and is absolutely loaded with former first-round picks. So, of course, this has to be one of the best units in the league after four games, right?
Well, not quite. The Steelers defense is actually No. 21 in the league in points allowed and No. 28 in yards allowed. Meanwhile, the Steelers are No. 2 in the NFL with 14 sacks and No. 2 in the league with seven total turnovers.
Since this unit is the epitome of a contradiction, we had a lot of fun assigning grades to each of the defensive positional units.
Defensive line – C
This group has been a mixed bag. Cam Heyward has underperformed after holding out all of the offseason. Defensive tackle Keeanu Benton came alive in the team’s fourth game after a slow start, and rookie Derrick Harmon is finally getting on the field and flashing as a rookie.
Outside linebacker – A
Another group that took a game to get moving, but after Alex Highsmith went down with an injury, this group came to life, led by T.J. Watt and Nick Herbig with a combined 5.5 sacks.
Inside linebacker – C
Another unit that has underperformed and dealt with injuries. Once Malik Harrison went down, we saw an increased role from Cole Holcomb, but the exceptional play of Patrick Queen, balanced by Payton Wilson struggling, leaves us feeling very average about this group.
Cornerback – B-
We are giving this group a bit of a pass due to the rash of injuries. Joey Porter Jr. has barely seen the field and both Jalen Ramsey and Darius Slay have dealt with injuries. This group gets a bump from some nice play from James Pierre and Brandin Echols as well.
Safety – B
We cannot overstate just how good DeShon Elliott is and how much he was missed when he was out with injury. There was some concern when the Steelers traded away Minkah Fitzpatrick but Elliott, along with Juan Thornhill and Chuck Clark have done a nice job filling in.
This article originally appeared on Steelers Wire: Grading the Steelers defensive positional units during the bye week
