Defense is Hurting

Polamalu, Shazier out for ailing Steelers defense heading into Jets game
By Alan Robinson
Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2014, 1:21 p.m.
Updated 1 hour ago

The Steelers will be without safety Troy Polamalu (sprained knee), inside linebacker Ryan Shazier (ankle) and safety Shamarko Thomas (hamstring) when they play the reeling New York Jets on Sunday in the Meadowlands.
All three were ruled out Tuesday by coach Mike Tomlin, who rarely lists a player out for a game this early in the work week unless an injury is significant.
Polamalu had played every snap on defense over the past two seasons until getting hurt during the Steelers' 43-23 victory over the Ravens on Sunday. He last missed significant playing time in 2012, when he was out for nine of the Steelers' 16 games with a torn calf.
Shazier, the Steelers' first-round draft pick, has been limited to 198 snaps during his rookie season — or about one-third of those played by the Steelers defense — by a sprained knee and the right ankle injury. He was wearing a protective boot on the right ankle when he left Heinz Field on Sunday night.
Thomas, a second-year safety, now has injured both hamstrings this season and has yet to play a single snap on defense. All of his limited playing time has been restricted to special teams.
With Polamalu and Thomas out, Robert Golden is the only healthy safety on the roster, in addition to starting free safety Mike Mitchell and Will Allen, the veteran backup who stepped in at strong safety when Polamalu was hurt Sunday night.
Allen had been on the field for only six defensive plays this season before filling in against the Ravens. Golden has played only one snap on defense. Another backup safety, Ross Ventrone, who plays on special teams, also was out Sunday with a hamstring injury.
The Steelers secondary — even with Polamalu playing — allowed more than 300 yards passing against the Ravens and Colts, but Tomlin said that wasn't “the total picture.” Both Andrew Luck and Joe Flacco were forced to throw in nearly every down after their teams fell behind by three-touchdown margins.
The Steelers rank 19th overall against the pass, allowing 252.2 yards per game and 15 touchdowns — nine fewer than the Jets' league-high 24 touchdown passes allowed.
Cornerback Ike Taylor, out with a broken right forearm since the Carolina game on Sept. 21, could return to full practice this week.
The Steelers (6-3) are trying for their first five-game winning streak in five years. The Jets are 1-8 with eight consecutive losses since they beat the winless Raiders in their opener, but Tomlin said the Jets are a dangerous team because of quarterback Michael Vick's playmaking ability, a strong running game led by Chris Johnson and a defense that ranks sixth overall.
Tomlin liked how the Steelers played in avenging a 20-point loss to the Ravens on Sept. 11 with a 20-point win, but he wasn't happy with a Jacoby Jones 108-yard kickoff return touchdown he called “ridiculous.” He said the kickoff coverage team was “dancing around” on the field to stadium music in advance of the return, wasn't ready to defend it and “it won't happen again.”
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Follow us: @triblive on Twitter | triblive on Facebook Can't have a letdown against the Jets. Fits right in with the NFL's strategy. Team on fire against a bumbling team and voila....upset city. On the otherhand, good week for Troy to sit out. I'm beginning to wonder about Shazier and Thomas. 2 promising picks that just can't stay healthy.