New Steelers DC Patrick Graham inherits a defense that certainly has talent, even if it didn’t perform up to expectations. Used to working with less—beyond Maxx Crosby—Graham already likes what he sees. Even from a purely visual standpoint, he knows that he has a lot to work with in the building already.
Speaking recently to Missi Matthews for the Steelers’ website, Patrick Graham was asked about what he likes about the defense. “The size”, he said with a knowing smile. “The sheer mass of the human beings that we have lined up out there. This is what you envision in terms of [what you want] your defense to look like, in terms of length, size, mass. They’re just big men. Every time I’ve met one of them, most of them are all bigger than me, and I’m not a small guy. But that just dwarf me and I’m like, ‘Yes! This is exactly what I want it to look like’”!
Prompted by Mike Tomlin’s resignation, the Steelers retooled nearly their entire coaching staff under Mike McCarthy on offense and defense. Former DC Teryl Austin remains out of a job, but Graham already had his staff together. And he has a cache of young and veteran players who make up the nucleus of his unit.
The core of the Steelers’ defense remains T.J. Watt and Cam Heyward, assuming the latter returns. They are the old guard, to which they added Jalen Ramsey via trade last offseason. GM Omar Khan confirmed they intend to retain Ramsey, and Patrick Graham likely had a say in that. Considering the lack of blue-chip players he had in Las Vegas, it might not be surprising he is in no rush to cast off talent.
The Steelers went into the 2025 season thinking they could have a historic defense. Most of their plans went awry, of course, some key pieces not even making it out of the season. It’s up to Patrick Graham to figure out what pieces he needs to make it all work.
That includes a growing crew of young contributors, most notably Joey Porter Jr. and Derrick Harmon. There are also Keeanu Benton and Nick Herbig, Payton Wilson, Yahya Black, and Jack Sawyer. The Steelers have also used free agency to add to the defense with Patrick Queen, Brandin Echols and others.
One of the biggest questions of the offseason, though, centers on the cornerback position. Both James Pierre and Asante Samuel Jr. are pending free agents. The Steelers don’t seem to have a starter opposite Porter on defense without them. Ramsey is not a full-time outside cornerback anymore, so do they re-sign one of them to start? Perhaps even both, if they can manage it. I’m sure Graham will take anything he can get.
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