Nick Herbig’s new contract is all but official. Now, the Pittsburgh Steelers must find a way to get him on the field to justify his $100 million price tag. A positive problem for Pittsburgh to have, and one the team was well underway to addressing even before yesterday’s news.
“You don’t draw up scheme as the season gets going,” Mike McCarthy told reporters Wednesday as shared by 93.7 The Fan. “These are things we’ve been working on since January. We’re excited to get Nick done. He’s part of some of the newer things we’re doing moving forward.”
Creatively using all three of Pittsburgh’s top pass rushers – T.J. Watt, Alex Highsmith, and Herbig – will be the mission. Last year, the Steelers had a three-rush package in obvious passing downs to get all three on the field. However, injuries to the group limited that usage to less than 40 snaps for the regular season. Expanding on that will be one aim. As will finding more ways to utilize all three.
In Highsmith’s rookie year, the Steelers deployed a three outside linebacker look against the run with one EDGE rusher aligned over the A-gap. Perhaps that could return along with new wrinkles under defensive coordinator Patrick Graham. Those changes should be felt early in the season.
“You gotta find ways to play everybody,” McCarthy said, who didn’t hide his excitement over the deal. “This is not an 11-man operation on offense, defense, special teams. You want everybody to play. I talk on it all the time about roster improvement and flexibility. You have to be able to play four downs at most positions.”
That fits with GM Omar Khan’s philosophy of maximizing versatility and flexibility. Ultimately, there must be production. Pittsburgh has as much talent coming off the edge as nearly any NFL defense. Now, the coaching staff must harness that ability to maximize its output. Getting the Steelers’ defense over the 50 sack threshold should be one goal, a feat the unit hasn’t achieved since 2021.
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