Giants All-Pro Could Solve Steelers Biggest Problem

PITTSBURGH — Is the solution to the Pittsburgh Steelers’ porous run defense a veteran defensive lineman from the New York Giants? The Steelers have been absolutely gashed in the run game through two weeks of action.

After the Steelers allowed a crushing 19-yard run against the Seattle Seahawks during a third and goal situation, it became crystal clear that something must change. One possible solution is targeting and acquiring interior defensive lineman Dexter Lawrence from the New York Giants.

The defensive line has been where the issues begin for the Steelers. Between injuries and poor performance, the front seven has been one of the biggest weaknesses for this supposedly elite defense. Recent first round pick Derrick Harmon is still not ready to return and the organization just placed depth tackle Isaiahh Loudermilk was placed on the Reserve/Injured List following Week 2.

Exacerbating the problem is that they are struggling to put players in the best position to succeed. Keeanu Benton is the perfect example. He’s been miscast as a traditional nose tackle when his size, build and skill set more closely align with a 4-3 defensive tackle or a 3-4 defensive end.

Football player stretches before egam — Sep 22, 2024; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; New York Giants defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence II (97) stretches during warm ups before the game against the Cleveland Browns at Huntington Bank Field. Mandatory Credit: Scott Galvin-Imagn Images | Scott Galvin-Imagn Images

Contrarily, Lawrence has the makings of a prototypical run-stuffing, nose tackle that the Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin covets in the middle of his defensive line. The soon-to-be 28-year-old is as stout as they come, weighing in at 340 pounds and standing 6’4”.

Lawrence also has the accolades to back it up. Over the past three years, he’s recorded 21 total sacks and 64 quarterback hits. He’s been a Pro Bowler in all three of those seasons and was named 2nd-team All-Pro in 2022 and 2023.

What makes him such an exciting potential fit is how he could balance out the team’s defensive front. As mentioned above, Benton is a player that is extremely talented when deployed correctly. Now, picture a defensive line with Cam Heyward and Benton on the ends and big Dexter Lawrence plugged in the middle. All of a sudden, the line goes from easily pushed back to, hopefully, the ones doing the pushing.

Lawrence also fits the bill of another Pro Bowler added to this defensive unit. The team’s all-in mentality hasn’t wavered, even with the setback loss to the Seahawks. That means they have to improve quickly. The solutions might lie within the roster already, and it might be a matter of tweaking some schematics to propel this unit to elite status once again. But if that’s not the case, the team should continue pushing their chips to the middle of the table and acquire another Pro Bowl player who can strengthen a worrisome run defense.

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