The Pittsburgh Steelers sit atop the AFC North with a 4-3 record, but cracks are showing in their foundation. Their defense, which carries the highest price tag in the NFL at $163 million per Over the Cap, has become a major liability instead of the championship anchor it was designed to be.
When asked whether the issues stem from the scheme or its execution, head coach Mike Tomlin didn't mince words, as per ESPN NFL reporter Brooke Pryor on X.
“We all have to own it. Certainly, you start with the schematics, man, because that's the leadership component of it, and certainly we'll be looking at everything that we're doing, man,” Tomlin said.
He added a sobering reality check about the team's progress. “Because some of these problems are somewhat repetitive and we're not getting better fast enough,” Tomlin acknowledged.
The numbers back up Tomlin's frustration. Despite fielding the most expensive defense in football, Pittsburgh ranks 29th in pass defense and allows 25 points per game. The unit has surrendered 30 or more points in four of seven games this season.
That kind of collapse hasn't happened in Pittsburgh since 2003. The defense features big-money stars like T.J. Watt ($23.3 million cap hit), Minkah Fitzpatrick ($22.8 million), and Cameron Heyward ($19.5 million). Yet opponents are shredding them with alarming consistency.
The breaking point came during their recent two-game skid. In Week 7, the Bengals dropped 33 points on them in a Thursday night shootout. Then came the Sunday night embarrassment against the Green Bay Packers, where the Steelers blew a 16-7 halftime lead and lost 35-25 at home.
That defeat marked Pittsburgh's first home loss to the Packers since 1970, ending a 55-year streak. Tight end Tucker Kraft torched them for seven catches, 143 yards, and two touchdowns as the secondary fell apart in the second half.
The defensive crisis has created a troubling imbalance. While Pittsburgh spends $163 million on defense, it fields one of the cheapest offenses at just $90 million. That ranks second-lowest in the league, behind only the Seahawks.
General manager Omar Khan built this roster around defensive dominance, banking on elite talent to carry them deep into the playoffs. Instead, the unit is delivering one of the worst returns on investment in recent memory. Something has to change when your defense costs nearly $28 million more than the second-highest spender and still ranks low.
Tomlin's admission that problems are “repetitive” signals deeper issues than just execution. The Steelers face the 7-1 Colts next in Week 9, a game that will test whether this expensive defense can finally deliver on its massive price tag or continue trending toward historic disappointment.
