Steelers embrace return of ILB Vince Williams to position ravaged by injuries

It’s not just the thumping Vince Williams brings as a tackler or the eight years of NFL experience he has playing a position decimated by injuries that Pittsburgh Steelers defensive coordinator Keith Butler has missed the past two weeks.

It’s the “voice” Williams brings as a defensive play caller.

“The communication is going to help us,” Butler said Thursday, a day after Williams was activated from the reserve/covid-19 list. “The guys who have been in there have done a pretty good job of getting the communication done. Vince is a little more confident in what he’s doing, and people around him are a little more confident with what we’re doing when he’s in there.”

Without Williams manning the middle of the defense, the Steelers lost games at Buffalo and Cincinnati to increase their losing streak to three following an 11-0 start. The Steelers already were without Devin Bush to a season-ending ACL tear, and his replacement, Robert Spillane, joined him on injured reserve with a torn pectoral muscle. He won’t be eligible to return until next week.

When Williams suddenly landed on the reserve/covid-19 list Dec. 10, it further thinned the ranks, leaving Avery Williamson, Marcus Allen and Ulysees Gilbert III as the remaining options on the 53-man roster. And each player had question marks. Williamson, although a veteran, had just joined the Steelers in November and was being counted on to wear the green dot on his helmet and relay the defensive signals. Allen is a converted safety who didn’t play linebacker until training camp, and the little-used Gilbert was coming off his own stint on injured reserve.

The Bills and Bengals took advantage of Williams’ absence. The Bills rushed for 70 of their 104 yards in the second half, turning a 9-7 advantage into a 26-15 victory. The Bengals gouged the Steelers for 94 of their 152 yards after halftime while holding on for a 27-17 upset of the AFC North leaders.

“That group can get worn down, particularly those who are elevated in their roles,” coach Mike Tomlin said, “guys like Marcus Allen, who got an increased role because of the lack of availability of Vince Williams and stuff like that. It could be catastrophic for them. … You put a defense in harm’s way under the circumstances — and individuals within a defense, particularly those who are in expanded roles.”

Williams’ return comes at a time when more players at his position are ending up in the training room. Allen sustained a stinger against Cincinnati, and even though he didn’t miss a snap in the game, he hasn’t practiced this week. Gilbert also hasn’t practiced because of an ankle injury.

“It means we have a leader out there in the linebacker corps,” safety Minkah Fitzpatrick said. “Avery and (Allen) did a good job out there, but Vince has been running this defense for a long time. Things are more fluid when you have a guy out there who has been doing it for a while.”

Williams not only provides a veteran voice on the field, whether it’s in a game or practice, but he is a respected leader in the locker room. His upbeat personality is being counted on to help navigate the Steelers out of their three-game skid.

“Vince beams confidence and loves football,” outside linebacker T.J. Watt said. “He absolutely loves this game and enjoys being around all the guys in this locker room. We love being in his company as well. To have a guy in that leadership role back, a guy on defense who makes the calls and is very assertive in his calls, it’s awesome to have him back this week.”

Despite his two-game absence, Williams remains ranked third on the team with 63 tackles, and his 14 tackles for loss are the fourth-most in the NFL.

His run-stopping success will come in handy considering the Steelers are coming off their second-worst effort at stopping the run this season. And Indianapolis enters having surpassed 100 yards rushing in seven of the past eight weeks behind the emergence of rookie Jonathan Taylor, who has gained 414 of his 842 yards in the past four weeks

“He’s one of our defensive stalwarts that we can rely on,” defensive captain Cameron Heyward said. “It was a little bit of an adjustment having Vince gone. Obviously, you want to plug guys in and be able to not miss a beat. For Vince, he doesn’t miss a lot of games, he’s a guy you can count on and the younger guys are still coming along.

“Having him back only benefits the group in terms of a mentality or intellectuals where they are able to talk about things. When he’s on the field, his physicality, the way he’s able to blitz, he really gives us an edge.”