Steelers' Dick LeBeau: Defense was 'rattled' by Browns no-huddle
Pittsburgh Steelers defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau said the team's defense has been "rattled" by the no-huddle offense against the Browns, Steelers.com's Mike Prisuta reports.
The Steelers gave up 24 second-half points when the Browns used the no-huddle in Week 1. In the preseason, the Steelers allowed 31 points to the Eagles, who use the no-huddle.
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LeBeau said he is confident the team can adjust to play better against high-speed offenses as they get more experience.
“It was a big issue,” LeBeau agreed. “We became a little bit rattled, and we can’t allow that to happen, and we’re working on that. To me that was the biggest issue. We didn’t give ourselves a chance and it showed.
“More than anything it was the element of uncertainty. I think they heard the call, but it was happening pretty fast and for many of them it was the first time it was at that tempo, (against) that skilled an athlete. We kind of lost our way there for a while. Fortunately, they settled down at the end there, and collectively we got the win.”
Steelers safety Troy Polamalu said the team has done much better against team's that play at a slower pace.
“What we’ve shown is if you want to huddle and play against us we’ll do fine, but this no-huddle (offense) has given us some problems,” Polamalu said. “We have to do something to rectify that. Coach (Dick) LeBeau is the genius of all defensive coordinators, and he’ll figure it out.”
Pittsburgh opens its road schedule on Thursday against the Baltimore Ravens.
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