Thinned ranks at OLB could limit Steelers' plans to rest T.J. Watt, Bud Dupree

While the Pittsburgh Steelers try to implement a scaled-down player rotation on the defensive line in the wake of Stephon Tuitt’s season-ending pectoral injury, they face the opposite issue at the next level of their defense.

Given the amount of playing time Bud Dupree and T.J. Watt have seen through six games, is it time for the Steelers to formulate a consistent rotation plan at outside linebacker?

Watt has played 86% of the defensive snaps during the Steelers’ 2-4 start, the same percentage he logged in 2018, but Dupree’s playing time has increased from 83% last season to 92, tops among all Steelers linebackers — inside or outside.

That question is pertinent this week when the Steelers face the Miami Dolphins since Watt is dealing with an abdominal issue and top backup Anthony Chickillo is on the commissioner exempt list. Ola Adeniyi, a former undrafted free agent in his second season, and journeyman Jayrone Elliott, re-signed Wednesday to fill Chickillo’s spot, are the only reserves at the outside spots.

Dupree thinks the time is right — provided everyone is healthy.

“I gotta start rotating,” Dupree said. “I’ve got to start coming off the field more and not being on it as much. It’s a long season, and we’ve got 10 more games and need to make sure we are capable of still playing a whole season and playoffs.”

Watt, who has missed only one game to injury in his first three seasons, also is in favor of spending a few more snaps on the sideline for the greater good.

“I think we’re trying to rotate more each week,” he said. “Trying to stay fresh for the end of games is a big thing for us. Obviously, we want to be out there as much as we can, but we want to be smart about it.”

Dupree said he was told at the end of last season to prepare for a heavier workload. He dropped 13 pounds and reported to training camp at 250. He since has gained back most of the weight he lost in the offseason. With 24 tackles, he is on pace for a career high. He also has three sacks, two passes defensed and a forced fumble.

“If you are doing good, they aren’t going to take you out,” he said. “You have to take it upon yourself to swallow your pride and come off the field to preserve energy.”

The Steelers have come a long way since 2016 when former outside linebackers coach Joey Porter would rotate his players on a series-by-series basis. That year, James Harrison played a position-high 56% of the snaps, with five players logging at least 30%.

That philosophy shifted in 2017 when Watt was drafted in the first round, and the Steelers committed to Dupree as the other starter. Still, Chickillo played more than 25% of the defensive snaps in relief of the two starters in the 2017-18 seasons.

This year, with Watt and Dupree helping the Steelers improve to a No. 8 defensive ranking, they have rarely left the field. The Steelers also didn’t have Chickillo for three games because of a foot injury, making the untested Adeniyi the top reserve. Adeniyi has played 8% of the snaps, two fewer than Chickillo.

The Steelers have seen the negative side of substituting for defensive starters. With Watt on the sideline early in a fourth-quarter series against the Baltimore Ravens, Adeniyi was called for roughing the passer on a second-down pass with 2 minutes, 30 seconds left. It extended the drive for the Ravens, who kicked the tying field goal late in regulation and won in overtime.

“He’s got to learn stuff, but he’s a good pass rusher,” said defensive coordinator Keith Butler, who planned to replace Adeniyi with Watt for third down on that series. “He’s trying to do what we’re asking him to do.”

Butler, who is doubling as outside linebackers coach this season, has been mindful of giving his starters the occasional breather, particularly in the first half of the season when the weather is hotter.

“Anytime you wrestle with a 300-pound offensive lineman every play, you’re going to get tired,” he said. “It’s just the way it is. … As much as they can play, they let us know so we can rest them in time that we don’t rest other people. We don’t want all the backups in there at once, so we try to do as good a job as we can in substitution.”

The challenge is different up front. Defensive line coach Karl Dunbar used a liberal rotation system in the first six weeks with two-time Pro Bowl tackle Cameron Heyward playing fewer than three-quarters of the snaps. With Tuitt out, Heyward’s playing time figures to increase, with nose tackle Javon Hargrave and backup end Tyson Alualu taking on bigger roles as well.

“We’re going to have to depend on those guys to play well for us and have somebody pick up the slack,” Butler said. “Tuitt had been playing well for us. We rotate those guys inside anyway. Hopefully, we’ll be OK.”