In the past, the belief was that making the jump from college to the NFL was supposed to be more difficult, particularly from a playbook aspect, due to the complex schemes and the language used.
That’s how it used to be, at least.
Now, it’s the other way around, at least for Pittsburgh Steelers rookie outside linebacker Jack Sawyer.
Appearing on the “Not Just Football with Cam Heyward” podcast that published Wednesday morning, Sawyer compared his old playbook at Ohio State under former defensive coordinator Jim Knowles to the playbook he’s operating in with the Steelers.
“I like the way that our playbook, for the most part — for us [outside linebackers] — isn’t too complicated, and it’s kind of simple,” Sawyer said of the Steelers’ defensive playbook, according to video via the show’s YouTube page. “And having T.J. [Watt] and those guys help me be able to learn it and then also be able to see what they’re seeing when T.J.’s explaining stuff to me and what he’s seeing and what we can do outside of the playbook maybe too, sometimes, I think has been very helpful.”
A fourth-round pick out of Ohio State who was consistently one of the better defenders in college football last season, Sawyer has provided the Steelers with solid reps as a rotational backup outside linebacker. Though his role is largely limited to a handful of defensive snaps every week and a key spot on special teams, he was able to hit the ground running in the NFL by having less on his plate, at least from a playbook perspective.
His comments about it being a simple playbook will undoubtedly raise eyebrows, especially as a lot of talk about the Steelers defense at the moment centers on schematics with questions being raised by players like Patrick Queen and even Brandin Echols.
Sawyer wasn’t trying to add fuel to that fire, though. He was just pointing out how complex Knowles’ playbook was and how he’d add stuff throughout the week, making things more challenging for the defense, especially pass rushers.
“Coach Knowles’ playbook had a lot of pages in it, and it had a lot of checks, particularly for the outside backers. We would blow four or five calls at practice, easily. We would put in 10 new plays on a Tuesday with like four different checks and I’d be taking notes, sweating,” Sawyer said recalling the Buckeyes’ defense. “I think I’d have it, and we’d go out there and I think I did it right. All of a sudden I’d hear, ‘Jack, what?’ He’d come running, ‘What are we doing, bro? It’s easy, man!’ And so it was kind of like a weekly progression of, okay, Coach Knowles puts this stuff in, we see how it looks on tape.
“And the thing I give him a lot of credit for is if it didn’t look good and it was too much he’d throw it out by Friday. So, we’d get our ass ripped, we fix it, and then we’d be ready to play on Saturday.”
Ohio State might have had a complicated defensive playbook under Knowles in Sawyer’s last two years in Columbus, but it paid off in a major way as the Buckeyes went on a dominant run in the College Football Playoffs, rolling to the national title.
Sawyer had a huge hand in that, too, with his strip-sack and fumble return for a touchdown against Texas in the semifinals.
Now in Pittsburgh, Sawyer is in a loaded outside linebacker room, and he’s able to play fast and free within a simple scheme. It’s helped him rack up 10 pressures, one sack, one interception and five run stops in 172 snaps this season. He continues to improve each and every week and looks like a legitimate long-term rotational piece for the Steelers.
Sometimes keeping it simple, especially for young players making a transition, works for the best.
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