Pittsburgh Steelers: 3 Takeaways from Week 1 vs Browns

1. Rushing the quarterback has returned

It felt like an eternity since Pittsburgh fielded a legitimate pass rush. Memories of Lamarr Woodley and James Harrison during the 2008 championship run flood everybody’s mind when trying to assemble the last dangerous edge rushers the Steelers had. Through years of trail, tribulation and frustration of watching Jarvis Jones, it appears the woes may finally be brought to an end.

Only to be out-done by the stupendous amount of sacks by Jacksonville (10), Pittsburgh found themselves in the Browns backfield early and often, bringing down the quarterback seven times. In 2016, the Steelers only had brought the quarterback down six times through five games.

Pittsburgh addressed the need in recent years by building up the front seven through the early round of the draft and growing them in the system. First-round pick T.J. Watt had himself quite the debut, accumulating five tackles, two sacks and an interception to put the icing on the cake against one of the best left tackles in the game, Joe Thomas. Among the handful of players to register themselves in the sack column, former Browns cornerback Joe Haden even found himself joining in on the party on a dialed-up blitz.

The plethora of sacks came against an offensive line that has been crowned among the best in the league by many analysts and pundits alike. As great as the front seven did against the pass, the secondary also deserves credit for providing time for the linebackers/linemen to get to the quarterback by way of good coverage.

Next: NFL Power Rankings 2017: Week 2

It’s no secret championships are built on defense, and although it’s only week one, we know this team at least possess the ability to put pressure on the passer, a key ingredient missing the past few seasons.