Draft next major phase in rebuilding defense

Bill Cowher, who helped build the great 21st century defenses the Steelers are now trying to rebuild, had a plan in the late 1990s when he helped put together a defense for the second time here.

“When we were building in the 2000s, we were going to be a defensive team and one that runs the football,” Cowher said. “We had to win games like that. We had to build a defense.”

The previous defense that helped carry the Steelers in his early years was disappearing through the mid to late 1990s — Rod Woodson, Carnell Lake, Greg Lloyd, Kevin Greene, Joel Steed, Thomas Everett, et al.

It was not unlike what has happened to the great Steelers defenses of the 21st century, the one Cowher and Tom Donahoe and Kevin Colbert helped to build. They were a

dominant defense for years. Over the course of 11 seasons, from 2001 through 2011, the Steelers defense ranked No. 1 in the NFL five times, in the top five nine times.

And, suddenly, they were gone. Today, the only player remaining on their defense with two Super Bowl rings is linebacker James Harrison.

The makeover began in 2012 and continued this year with the departures of end Brett Keisel ,cornerback Ike Taylor and safety Troy Polamalu. In 2013, they ranked No. 13 as a defense in yards allowed and in 2014 slipped to 18th. The previous time they ranked so low in consecutive years were 1991 (22) and 1992 (13).

The massive reconstruction of the Steelers defense will continue next week in the draft.

“There comes a time with every team in the league where you have to almost back up and get new defenses and try to rebuild it,” said Donahoe, the Steelers director of football operations until 2000 — when Colbert took over — and now senior football adviser for the Philadelphia Eagles. “It happens to everybody; the Steelers aren’t alone with it.

“Based on the players the Steelers lost or retired or whatever, they have holes they have to address. For that reason, this is probably a key draft.”

The question remains, did the Steelers start weeding-out old vets too late?

“One of the hardest things in player evaluation is trying to determine when you think a player is starting to slide,” Donahoe said. “It’s really hard to do. Some of it is loyalty, some of it is maybe you think the guy had an off year and will come back, but every player hits the wall. Father time is undefeated, always will be, but it’s hard to judge when to do this, but you have to. If you don’t and let a player stick around a year or two too long, it really puts you behind the eight ball. It’s not easy to do. I’m sure the Steelers wrestled with Troy Polamalu.”

Cowher believes they are not that far away, which might put him in the minority.

“You’d like to upgrade the secondary and find a pass-rusher,” Cowher said. “It comes down to those two things.”

But you cannot go to a grocery store and just pick out the best cuts.

Finding cornerbacks and perhaps a safety along with a pass-rusher is something every defense needs. But history shows it is not east to do.

Take how they built their previous great defense: It began somewhat with a whimper when cornerback Deshea Townsend joined them as a fourthround pick in the 1998 draft. Then came linebacker Joey Porter (third round) and end Aaron Smith (fourth) in 1999. Linebacker Clark Haggans (fifth) arrived in 2000; nose tackle Casey Hampton (first) and linebacker Kendrell Bell (second) in 2001; linebacker Larry Foote (fourth), safety Chris Hope (third) and end Keisel (seventh) in 2002; safety Polamalu (first) and cornerback Taylor (fourth) in 2003, and cornerback Bryant McFadden (second) in 2005.

They trickled in over a long period, supplemented with free agents James Farrior, Kimo von Oelhoffen and Ryan Clark and undrafted rookies Harrison and Chris Hoke. There were busts, too, such as end/linebacker Alonzo Jackson (second) in 2003, cornerback Ricardo Colclough (second) in 2004 and safety Anthony Smith (third) in 2006.

They have infused many young players into their defense the past few years. Some have been successful, others such as Jarvis Jones, Ryan Shazier, Shamarko Thomas and Cortez Allen have not for one reason or another, yet those four are being counted on in a big way to help them in 2015. Expecting immediate help from this draft might be asking too much.

“Ideally, you’re bringing in a young player who learns the system and doesn’t go through the growing pains,” Cowher said. “Joey [Porter] didn’t start day one. You’d like them to come in and learn to understand the system and its idiosyncrasies. You try to make that transition smooth.”

That was not the case with Jones and Shazier, and they did not provide immediate help. Yet Cowher likes their line and their inside linebackers.

“I think they’re very strong down the middle with those two inside linebackers, Lawrence Timmons and Shazier.

“You start with that. Can Jarvis Jones give them a pass rush? What you do schematically is based on what kind of pressure you can get from your front four. If you can’t, you have to manufacture a rush. We always were going back and forth with that — can you be in blitz, or go basic because the front four can win?

“In the secondary, they’re going to have to upgrade the talent level somehow — safety or corner.

”They have the ability to be one of the top offenses, so the defense doesn’t have to dominate.”