Since the Steelers moved Jalen Ramsey to safety and acquired Kyle Dugger, their defense has seemed to settle down. They’ve gone 2-1 in that span, losing only when their offense mustered just 10 points against the Chargers. Statistically, they have put up some of their best numbers of the season in that span. Former Steelers OL Trai Essex isn’t surprised.
“There’s no coincidence in this. It’s directly [attributed] to the fact that Jalen is playing free safety and we traded for Kyle Dugger”, he said on 93.7 The Fan in explaining why the Steelers’ defense has improved in recent weeks.
“That stability back there in the back end has solidified everything for us. That’s what we’ve been trying to find. Something that we thought we had with Juan Thornhill that didn’t work. Obviously, DeShon [Elliott] being hurt, in and out of the lineup the first part of this year didn’t help the stability”.
While the Steelers just recently acquired Kyle Dugger, even Jalen Ramsey wasn’t in their initial plans—and not at safety. Although they had an eye on his versatility, they brought him in primarily to play cornerback. They wanted him for matchups like Ja’Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, but the past month has shown them that’s not currently what’s best for the team.
Of course, a lot of that is out of their hands and his. DeShon Elliott, their top safety after trading Minkah Fitzpatrick, has only played in five games, a total of 281 snaps. Following the Fitzpatrick trade, they aimed to lean on Juan Thornhill, whom they have since released. They added similar veterans in Chuck Clark and Jabrill Peppers. But there’s a reason the Steelers moved Ramsey to safety and then traded for Dugger.
“I think Kyle Dugger is perfect for this defense, and he’s already paid dividends”, Essex said of Ramsey’s new running mate. “He’s already got on the board. Could’ve had more interceptions. He’s fit in seamlessly, and that’s the biggest reason, no doubt about it”.
The situation is not dissimilar to the end of the 2023 season. Due to attrition that year, the Steelers ended the season moving Patrick Peterson to safety and promoting Eric Rowe from the practice squad. Similarly, Ramsey is new to safety and Dugger is new to the team. Of course, this is, in theory, a higher-level pairing, and so far, it looks like it.
In contrast to Peterson, Ramsey actually had a safety background in college. And he expressed a desire to finish his career there, citing Charles and Rod Woodson. Maybe he didn’t want it to happen this way, this quickly, but he embraced it in the spirit of the team. And surprisingly, Dugger has seemed to step right in without missing a beat. There really is something to this safety tandem, it seems, and the stability of the Steelers’ defense in recent weeks.
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