The Pittsburgh Steelers pulled off a huge upset against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday in Acrisure Stadium winning the game by a score of 20-18. The Steelers were without T.J. Watt, Minkah Fitzpatrick, Akhello Witherspoon, Levi Wallace and Cam Sutton on defense and arguably had their best defensive performance of the season. Terrell Edmunds did a good job anchoring the secondary, Myles Jack and Robert Spillane played great in the middle of the defense and Devin Bush knocked down the attempt to tie the game on a two-point conversion.
Credit: Abigail Dean / Pittsburgh Steelers
The Steelers also got another All-Pro level performance from Alex Highsmith, who just keeps piling up sacks and impact plays in the absence of Watt. His performance through six games may not be drawing national media attention but he is now drawing the attention that was reserved for Watt from offensive coordinators. Highsmith is drawing double teams and it freed up Larry Ogunjobi, Malik Reed and Cam Heyward Sunday to put pressure on Tom Brady.
Highsmith is not just drawing similar attention to his running mate Watt but also putting up similar numbers to his fellow outside linebacker. Highsmith has 6.5 sacks in 6 games this season and 2 forced fumbles. He is strong against the run and while he is not quite as active in batting down balls when he can’t get to the quarterback, he batted down a pass against Tom Brady on Sunday.
“Coach Tomlin always says the standard is the standard,” Highsmith said after the game. “Real proud and thankful for the guys who stepped up and made an impact today, because we needed it. We just gotta keep building.”
Highsmith has been the most consistent Steelers defender this season and is leading the NFL in sacks. He also has 11 hurries and 2 additional quarterback hits according to Pro Football Focus for a total of 19 pressures on the season. According to the dart board grading that the site is infamous for, the NFL sack leader is the 209th-best pass rusher in the NFL. That is not a typo. Watt, Fitzpatrick, Bush, Ogunjobi and Heyward have ranked ahead of him on his own defense.
Credit: Jared Wickerham / Pittsburgh Steelers
The former third-round pick from Charlotte has flashed superior talent in 2020-21 but has exploded in his third season. He was a prime breakout candidate heading into the season and the scary thing for offensive coordinators is that Watt may be only a week or two away from returning. If Watt is 75% when he returns to the defense, he will demand the double teams, and Highsmith who is playing out of his mind will be left one on one with an offensive tackle.
Pittsburgh Steelers linebackers Kevin Greene (91) and Greg Lloyd play during an NFL game against the New England Patriots on Dec. 5, 1993, at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh / Credit: George Gojkovich/Getty Images
The Steelers are currently 19th in the NFL in sacks with 12 sacks on the season. They have not finished under 50 sacks since they drafted Watt in 2017 and with 11 games remaining, they will need to average more than 3 sacks per game for the remainder of the season to reach that number. Highsmith has already set a career-high in sacks and if he maintains this level of performance and Watt plays the second half of the season, the Steelers might wake up the echoes of Kevin Greene and Greg Lloyd who terrified offenses in the 1990s as a duo.
The Steelers are 2-4 and have a huge mountain to climb on offense. The defense seemed to find itself this weekend against Brady and Tampa Bay and as they get pieces back, if they improve on this performance then the mock drafting will prove premature, and the Steelers just might be playing to win the AFC North in December.
What do you think Steeler Nation? Do you expect Highsmith to continue at an All-Pro level? Comment below or on my Twitter @thebubbasq.
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