Preseason Game 1: Steelers Vs. Vikings - Hall of Fame Game

Game day from Canton, OH.
Video from the Steelers' website:
http://www.steelers.com/videos/video...8-ea3171714b23
Article from the Trib on the Steelers defense:
http://triblive.com/sports/steelers/...#axzz3hYbzkuFm
"Steelers defense ready to debut new zone coverage looks
CANTON, Ohio — The Steelers will unveil their new-look, zone-heavy defensive scheme Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings in the Pro Football Hall of Fame Game.
That's the good news.
The bad news is that they likely won't be able to get a good gauge on how far they've come in making the switch from a mostly man-to-man team to a Cover 2/Four Quarters defense because of the personnel they will have available.
The Steelers likely will be without four of their top five safeties, including starters Mike Mitchell (hamstring) and Shamarko Thomas (shoulder), leaving arguably the most important position in a Cover 2 scheme to the likes of three first-year players (Alden Darby, Ian Wild, Jordan Dangerfield) who have never taken an NFL snap and a rookie seventh-round pick (Gerod Holliman).
For the first of five preseason games, that's fine for Steelers coach Mike Tomlin.
“Obviously, we are experiencing some short-term discomfort at the safety position with a number of guys out, but I don't focus on the guys that are out,” Tomlin said. “Whether it's Alden Darby or Ian Wild, we want to see these guys play football. They have worked their tails off, and I want to see what they are capable of doing, and we are excited about it.”
That same excitement can be said about adding zone coverages to a defense that played mostly man-to-man and fire zones (zone that turns into man once route is declared) over the past decade under defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau.
The Steelers and LeBeau parted ways in January, allowing new defensive coordinator Keith Butler to incorporate more zone coverages, including the Cover 2 — a defense that Tomlin coached while with Tampa Bay.
Tomlin has been hands-on teaching the new scheme to the defensive backs in camp. The theory behind the switch is to create more turnovers and prevent the big pass play.
Defensive backs will have their eyes on the at all times now. That could result in more turnovers, something the secondary hasn't produced much over the past decade.
“Any time you can make a quarterback figure out what coverage you are in, compared to know what you are in with a presnap read, it helps you,” Mitchell said. “Ultimately, it is going to come down to execution.”
The key to the success of the scheme is having athletic safeties. The Steelers have that with Mitchell and Thomas. They will find out if they have others Sunday.
Wild, a Baldwin graduate who played in the CFL for Winnipeg for two years, and Darby fit that mold.
“One man's misfortune is another man's opportunity,” Tomlin said. “We believe that and we live that. I think about what a great opportunity this game is going to be for guys like Darby and Wild.”
Darby and Wild won't be the only unknowns on the field Sunday.
Tomlin already ruled out Ben Roethlisberger, Le'Veon Bell, Antonio Brown, Maurkice Pouncey and James Harrison with more likely to follow suit.
That will give opportunities to others players, such as linebacker Shayon Green, quarterback Landry Jones, running back Cameron Stingily and wide receiver C.J. Goodwin.
“I think that one of the things that I embrace, and I know that the guys that have been here embrace, is that we legitimately don't care about what means you get here,” Tomlin said. “If you have a helmet on, you have an opportunity to carve out a niche for yourself in this group. I am excited about watching these guys take advantage of that opportunity.”
What Tomlin is looking for from the young guys is threefold:
• Effort: Play hard and fast.
• Mental mistakes: No pre- and post-snap penalties.
• Awareness: Be cognizant of situational football.
“Those are the three things that are critical for us in terms of setting a good barometer with this group and some things that we're looking for in the stadium,” Tomlin said. “We know we're not going to play perfect this first time out, but we can't compromise playing hard and playing fast. We're going to cater our menu to allow guys to play in that manner, but it's also their responsibility to play in that manner.”
Mark Kaboly is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. Reach him at mkaboly@tribweb.com or via Twitter @MarkKaboly_Trib."
HERE WE GO!!!