Bill Cowher would not need a long film session to spot what is wrong here. The Pittsburgh Steelers are built to pressure quarterbacks into mistakes, but through five games that idea has looked more like a promise than a reality. Ray Fittipaldo said the quiet part out loud: the interior pass rush is nonexistent, and the overall rush is a big concern. That is not a small critique. That is the foundation of the defense wobbling under its own weight.
The numbers from last week against the Indianapolis Colts only sharpen the point. Daniel Jones was getting the ball out in 2.74 seconds on average, and the Steelers managed just one sack. That is not remotely enough disruption for a defense that is supposed to live in opposing backfields. If the rush cannot even threaten the middle, the edges become easier to handle and the entire scheme gets pushed backward. That is exactly what has happened.
Pressure is not arriving where it matters most
Fittipaldo’s criticism was direct for a reason. It is one thing for edge rushers to miss opportunities. It is something else entirely when the pocket itself is not being collapsed. “They’re not pushing the pocket at all,” he said, and that is the detail that should worry Pittsburgh the most. Quarterbacks can live with edge heat if they are being forced to step into trouble. Right now, that middle squeeze is missing.
In Week 4, Derrick Harmon was injured against the Cleveland Browns and was placed on IR. That matters because it leaves Cam Heyward carrying heavier snaps at 37 and puts more responsibility on Keeanu Benton to help restore some force inside. There is only so much a veteran can do when the body count keeps rising and the pressure has to come in waves that never quite arrive. Patrick Graham’s line about “waves and bunches” sounds nice in theory. The Steelers need it to become reality.
The back end matters, but it does not solve everything
There is also the broader defensive picture to consider. Injuries to Jamel Dean and DeShon Elliott and the loss of Joey Porter Jr. have affected all levels of the defense, and getting healthier on the back end should help. But that is only part of the repair job. The push up the middle still has to start. Without it, the Steelers are asking the back seven to cover for too much, for too long, against quarterbacks who are being allowed to work comfortably.
That is why Sunday against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers feels like more than a routine test. This is a chance to prove the problem is temporary rather than structural. If the Steelers cannot generate pressure now, against a team that will absolutely notice the weakness, then the concern stops being a talking point and starts becoming an identity. And that is where Bill Cowher’s old-school standard would turn from nostalgia into a very uncomfortable comparison.
