National Football League

Steelers vs. Jets: Coordinators Comments

Updated Mar. 5, 2020 1:56 a.m. ET

foxsports

The Steelers rebounded in a major way from their brutal loss to the Eagles to turn around and blow out the Chiefs.

Oct 2, 2016; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers defensive end Cameron Heyward (97) sacks Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith (11) during the second half at Heinz Field. The Steelers won the game, 43-14. Mandatory Credit: Jason Bridge-USA TODAY Sports

The team shined on all three phases of the game and the coordinators sat down to talk a little bit about what went right, what went wrong, and what they’re working on for the Jets.

It’s hard to pick which unit had the better turnaround considering how lopsided both games were in either direction but the defense had a significant bump in their quarterback pressures. If a team’s success is measured on how they respond to adversity then this is definitely a good sign.

Defensive coordinator Keith Butler spoke to Missi Matthews about how important it is to prepare each week with the same level of intensity regardless of who the upcoming opponent is.

“We don’t play any slouches in the National Football League. Anybody can beat you and you have to practice that way.” – Keith Butler

Butler also noted that while the 43-14 win was a commanding one, it’s not perfect and they can always do better.

“It’s a great win to have but we would have preferred to shut them out.” – Keith Butler

Linebacker Vince Williams had a lot of success stepping in for the injured Ryan Shazier and Butler attributes his performance to his being a “big mouth” and being able to communicate effectively with everyone on the field.

It looks like Williams will have to keep up the big mouth again this week as it’s not looking likely that Shazier will return to face the Jets.

When it comes to having to prepare for the offenses they’ll face, Butler reminds us that they have to go up against the likes of Le’Veon Bell and Antonio Brown in practice and training camp. In that case there’s no one that should really scare them at all, right?

Special Teams

Sep 25, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers strong safety Shamarko Thomas (29) and inside linebacker Vince Williams (98) kneel down in preparation of a game against the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field. The Philadelphia Eagles won 34-3. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports

When it comes to special teams that particular unit has been rather solid so far this year aside from the blocked kick in Philly. Danny Smith is hesitant to call out any particular players on how well or not they’re performing but he was asked about the performance of Shamarko Thomas.

This is important because with the injury to safety Robert Golden the defense went with Jordan Dangerfield instead of Thomas. Thomas is in the final year of his rookie contract and has just not performed to the degree that he was expected to as far as the safety position.

More from Still Curtain

On special teams, however, that’s a different story. Smith explains why Thomas is actually leading the NFL in special teams tackles.

“Shamarko is an outstanding player. He really is. I love the guy. He and I have been together for a while. He and I have plans that we put into practice. I count on him a lot. I demand a lot from him. I expect a lot from him as he does himself. He is a fun guy to be around, he is a fun guy to coach because he’s number one competitive and number two he is tough. He can run. He has a lot of attributes. He has that want to. He wants to be special. He has a chance to be. He is playing well. I think you will see continuous good play out of him and I am proud of him because he works his butt off to do that.” – Danny Smith

We’ll have to see if Thomas’ special teams contributions will be enough to get another contract. It worked for Robert Golden.

Offense

Oct 2, 2016; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Sammie Coates (14) carries the ball as Kansas City Chiefs outside linebacker Frank Zombo (51) defends during the first quarter at Heinz Field. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

The offense looks like the freight train has officially left the station and the only thing that can take these guys down are injuries. Offensive coordinator Todd Haley talks about the improvement to receiver Sammie Coates while he becomes more than just the deep ball threat.

I have to admit, though, I do love me a good deep ball.

“He is not just running paper routes where you see the drawing and you know in a broad sense what you have, but there are so many finer details to it. He is not just running the paper routes. He is fine tuning what he is doing. That is giving the quarterback confidence. It’s giving him confidence. So then he is playing faster and more decisively.” – Todd Haley

You can’t help but step back and appreciate the orchestra that Todd Haley and Ben Roethlisberger have assembled with this offense. You could hear it in Ben’s own comments after the last game how much he enjoys spreading the ball out and getting guys like Jesse James and DeAngelo Williams touchdowns.

The level of trust between Roethlisberger and Haley spills over onto the field and you can see how the relationships between the quarterback and each of the players on the offense is different but important.

That level of trust is going to be super important this week as they deal with more injuries along the offensive line. Like I said before, the only thing that can stop this freight train is injuries and I can’t help but believe that as long as the “Killer B’s” are healthy there’s no stopping them.

This article originally appeared on