Dick LeBeau and his 3-4 scheme in Pittsburgh

[Popeye's Army]

Steelers defense a marriage of planning and talent

After watching the Steelers' top-ranked defense suffocate a handful of offenses this season, scouts can't stop raving about the team's linebackers. James Harrison, LaMarr Woodley, Larry Foote, James Farrior and Lawrence Timmons spearhead a unit that allows only 69.7 yards a game on the ground, ranks first in passing defense (158.7 yards a game) as well as sacks (25) heading into Sunday's showdown with the defending Super Bowl champion Giants.

Traditionally, linebackers are viewed as the backbone of the 3-4, and the Steelers' unit exemplifies that theory. It has accounted for 23 of the team's 25 sacks, and each linebacker has at least 24 tackles (Farrior is the team leader with 39). Moreover, Harrison and Woodley are tied for second in the league in sacks (8 each) and Harrison's three forced fumbles are the most in the league.

"The man behind the curtain is brilliant," said an AFC scout of Steelers defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau. "He has created a plug and play system that allows his players to thrive on the field."

Added an NFC personnel director, "They have a great scheme that has been in place for years, so the players find comfort in the consistency of the game plan."

LeBeau, who has spent seven seasons as the team's defensive coordinator, is often credited with coming up with the modern zone blitz scheme, and he continues to refine his system. Using a variety of five- and six-man pressures from an odd front, the Steelers put enormous pressure on the opponent's protection scheme. With four linebackers available to blitz, Pittsburgh makes it tough for offenses to consistently identify which rushers are attacking prior to the snap. Plus, the increased use of overload pressures (four men attacking from one side) creates a favorable matchup for one of the Steeler's talented rushers. The team relentlessly attacks that mismatch throughout the game.

"Their scheme is difficult to prepare for because of the flexibility of the 3-4," said an NFC personnel director. "You have a tough time figuring out which guy is coming, so you have a tendency to play passive because you're thinking too much. Also, they are pretty creative with how they attack your blocking scheme. They design their blitz to specifically attack your weakness in protection, and repeatedly dial it up until you make a change."

While the scheme is outstanding, the Steelers have also done an outstanding job identifying players who are perfectly suited for it. They have a long tradition of converting undersized college defensive ends into outside linebackers. That gives them a huge advantage when creating pressure off the edge because their linebackers are typically bigger than the average linebacker. And they craft their scheme to create plenty of opportunities for the linebackers to work against smaller running backs and tight ends in pass protection.

The trick has worked to perfection this season as Woodley and Harrison have feasted off the mismatches on the way to making a host of game-changing plays off the edge. In addition, their presence on the edges has freed up the inside linebackers to aggressively attack gaps inside. Foote and Farrior have thrived against the run, while Timmons has been used as an inside linebacker on passing downs to give the team an additional pass rusher in their blitz package. The former first rounder has excelled as the extra rusher, and his three sacks have forced offenses to pay attention to yet another linebacker in pass protection.

LeBeau may created the zone blitz to take advantage of an exceptional set of linebackers in the '90's, but this year's version of "Blitz-burgh" may turn out to be the best crew to play in the scheme.


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[Popeye's Army]

Woodley and Timmons were two LB I really liked in recent drafts. I wish both of them could have become Jets.

[SameOldJets2008]

Originally Posted by Popeye's Army

Woodley and Timmons were two LB I really liked in recent drafts. I wish both of them could have become Jets.

if you notice the steelers had PAITENCE with them and niether contributed that much as rookies. We need to take the same mindset with Gholston and other young 3-4 players we get

[NDmick]

I'd sell a kidney for LaBeau to come here.

I wish the Jets had a guy with half his talent, because Sutton has 1/250 of his talent.

[flajetfan]

if mangini gets axed we need to make a serious run at him for h.c. if not i'd like to see us replace suton with mike nolan.

[Cakes]

Originally Posted by flajetfan

if mangini gets axed we need to make a serious run at him for h.c. if not i'd like to see us replace suton with mike nolan.

No.
He will be 72 at the start of the 2009 season.

Plus, he sucked bad as the Bengals head coach.

[Popeye's Army]

Originally Posted by Cakes

No.
He will be 72 at the start of the 2009 season.

Plus, he sucked bad as the Bengals head coach.

I'd be happy taking LeBeau's top assistant to be our DC next season.

And if Mangini gets fired, whoever takes his place MUST keep the 3-4. It's taken too long to get the right players. No switching back.

[Cakes]

Originally Posted by Popeye's Army

I'd be happy taking LeBeau's top assistant to be our DC next season.

Their defensive line coach is John Mitchell. He's been a Steelers assistant coach since 1994.
Keith Butler is their linebackers coach. He's been with the Steelers since 2003. He coached for the Browns from 1999-2002.

[ScotsJet]

I wonder if some of Gholston's problems are due to the way they're trying to teach him. Perhaps he'd be getting on better in Pittsburgh.

[flajetfan]

Originally Posted by Cakes

No.
He will be 72 at the start of the 2009 season.

Plus, he sucked bad as the Bengals head coach.

don't care he's obviously a good teacher and plenty of experience.he'd probably bring his assistance with him one of which he could be grooming as his replacement.....and name one coach who hasn't sucked with the bengals?

[Popeye's Army]

Originally Posted by flajetfan

name one coach who hasn't sucked with the bengals?

Paul Brown

[Harpua]

Originally Posted by ScotsJet

I wonder if some of Gholston's problems are due to the way they're trying to teach him. Perhaps he'd be getting on better in Pittsburgh.

Did you miss the comment above that Woodley did almost nothing in the 3-4 in his rookie season? In 13 games, he had 14 tackles and 4 sacks. It takes time for young pass rushers to develop. If Gholston is still doing nothing in a couple of years, then feel free to call him a wasted pick. For now I'll with hold judgement to see if he can develop into a NFL 3-4 player.

[Firemangini Ed]

Originally Posted by Popeye's Army

Woodley and Timmons were two LB I really liked in recent drafts. I wish both of them could have become Jets.

I wanted Woodley in that draft, not Harris. But Woodley had a quiet rookie season and now he's a star, maybe it will be the same for Gholston.

[Killeri9590]

I too wanted Woodley in the 07 draft but Harris has turned out well so it's all good

[Passepartout]

Harris has turned out well so far, so good!

[Cakes]

Originally Posted by flajetfan

don't care he's obviously a good teacher and plenty of experience.he'd probably bring his assistance with him one of which he could be grooming as his replacement.....and name one coach who hasn't sucked with the bengals?

You don't care that he'll be 72 at the start of next season? Are you serious?
The guy would coach the Jets for two years tops at that age. He'd be a basketcase coaching that inept franchise. The Jets are not much better than the Bengals. He'd probably suck a little less with the Jets than he did with the Bengals, but he'd still suck.