The Pittsburgh Steelers' defense will have a new look for the 2026 season. The unti was very rudimentary the last four seasons under Teryl Austin. It was very turnover-reliant. Now, with new Defensive Coordinator Patrick Graham, the defense should not only improve, but also develop. Over the last few seasons, the Steelers have struggled to develop young talent. With this new coaching staff and some new hands on the defense, the Steelers should be able to develop their young draft picks, finally. There is one player in particular that Graham needs to get better play out of.
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Steelers insider linebacker Payton Wilson (41) walks on the field as the team works out during a 2025 training camp practice at St. Vincent College in Latrobe, PA.
Linebacker Payton Wilson was a third-round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. Wilson is a freak athlete who excels in coverage, but in the Steelers' scheme, linebackers must be able to stop the run and defend the pass. Wilson is a good coverage linebacker, but defending the run is a different story.
Wilson was benched early in the 2025 season in favor of Cole Holcomb, then eventually Malik Harrison. The Steelers' scheme is a hard one for linebackers, which is why the team has run through so many. Wilson is still a young player and has tremendous upside. Ray Fittipaldo of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette appeared on 93.7 The Fan and discussed Wilson potentially developing under the new defensive coordinator.
"They gave Payton some runway to earn that full-time job. There were some early-season struggles against the run, and I think Payton had a little bit of that pinned on him." Fittipaldo said. "He didn't put his head down, and he was still a really good player in sub-packages. So I think the question for Graham is, can you run him out there again? Can you see if you can make it work even though he's not that typical body type who's a full-time inside linebacker... I think either way you still have a really good player."
Wilson's struggles against the run aren't all on him. The defensive line was very inconsistent throughout the season. In some games, they were being pushed back five yards; in others, they were stout. As Fittipaldo mentioned, Wilson does not have the typical linebacker build.
Wilson is 6'4" and 242 pounds. He is tall and lengthy. Wilson is a finesse linebacker; he is not going to run through an offensive linemen. Wilson needs his defensive linemen to eat up blocks and allow him to use his speed.
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Pittsburgh Steelers' Payton Wilson and Elandon Roberts make a tackle on Ravens' running back Derrick Henry in 2024.
Wilson allowed a 104.3 passer rating in 2025, not good for a guy who is seen as a coverage linebacker, but this number can be faulted by the poor scheme. The Steelers' linebackers are often left out to dry, as they are often tasked with covering slot receivers. Graham is known as a guy who works to his players' strengths. Hopefully, under Graham, the Steelers will ask less of their linebackers and more of their defensive backs.
Steelers Truly Need To Rely More On The Secondary
The Steelers had a solid secondary in 2025. Joey Porter Jr. is emerging as one of the best shut-down cornerbacks in the NFL. The Steelers also got some pretty solid play from James Pierre and Asante Samuel Jr, both of whom are free agents. The Steelers have a ton of cap space in 2026, so bringing either of these two back shouldn't be an issue. The Steelers need to rely more on the back end of the defense.
Alysa Rubin / Pittsburgh Steelers
Pittsburgh Steelers cornerback Joey Porter Jr. (24) during a regular season game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Indianapolis Colts, Sunday, Nov. 2, 2025 in Pittsburgh, PA.
In 2026, the Steelers blitzed on 29.6% of plays. Especially on third downs, this allowed them to be picked apart as teams just knew what they were doing. The Steelers ran more man coverage than usual in 2026, which is good, but they need to better use their defensive backs.
The scheme has always relied on the defensive front to get to the quarterback, but those days are done. The front seven isn't getting any younger; the Steelers need to take pressure off of them, especially the linebackers.
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