Steelers Great James Harrison Has Harsh Message For Defense Before Battle With Colts: "You Gonna Get Beat By Indy"

The Pittsburgh Steelers have had nothing but negative feedback on their defensive performance in recent weeks. To make things worse, they have to try and rebound against the team with the best record in the NFL: the Indianapolis Colts. Numerous teams have failed to figure out a way to slow down their potent offense, and nobody outside the team facilities think that Pittsburgh can either. The idea that the team can even pull off four more wins is in question as well.

That seems to be the case with former players as well. On a recent episode of Deebo & Joe, former Defensive Player of the Year James Harrison went off on the Steelers' defense, and he gave his thoughts about the upcoming game. 

"I tell you what. Defense, y'all trash," Harrison said. "You gonna get beat by Indy. Now go out there and prove me wrong. PLEASE!"

Harrison's hope with that statement is that the defense uses that criticism and doubt as fuel to finally play up to their ability. He said that that's what would work on him, but who knows if that's the case with the current state of the Steelers? We will see for sure in Week 9. We will all see if they can take criticism and motivation or if they will just get ran over all game long by a superior team and give more lip service to change afterwards.

The main one piece that Harrison is scared of is Jonathan Taylor, and it makes sense why. The former First Team All-Pro is on pace to shatter many of his records from 2021. He already has over 1,000 scrimmage yards and 14 total touchdowns through just eight games. He can and will break the Steelers if they don't step up and play up to their ability as a cohesive, functioning unit. 

Even if they stop him, they have to deal with Daniel Jones in his career revival. He is on pace to throw for well over 4,000 yards while also rocking a 71.2% completion percentage. He is very smart with the football, and he makes very few mistakes. He has the ability to dice up this weak secondary, especially if they don't play tougher and more physical at the line of scrimmage against these underrated wide receivers.

To make everything worse, Head Coach Shane Steichen has Mike Tomlin's number. Ever since his days with the Los Angeles Chargers, Steichen has had absolutely no trouble figuring out Tomlin's seemingly predictable defense. Unless Tomlin finally makes adjustments in this game, his scheme will continue to get exposed. While Harrison may just be trying to give motivation, his statement could easily be true. 

Steelers Will Likely Continue With Embarrassing Stat That Reinforces Negative Narratives

If the Steelers do lose against the Colts, it will be the eighth consecutive season where they suffer through a losing streak of at least three games or more, which goes back to November of 2018. In 2024, it was a five-game losing streak that ended their campaign, which includes an embarrassing loss in the Wild Card Round. Pittsburgh may not choke many games away, but it tends to choke whole seasons away in recent years. 

Like 2024, the Steelers had the AFC North crown in their grasp during the season. This time, it feels like they were just handed the division on a plate with how everyone else fell apart in September and early October. Instead of taking what's given to them, they're beginning to let the division slip away once again, and now they are looking at another year where they don't win in the playoffs, and nobody takes them seriously. 

What do you think about Harrison's harsh comments towards the Steelers' defense? Let us know in the comments or on X at @Steelers_ChrisB.

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