Steelers' New DC Patrick Graham Has Opportunity To Expose Mike Tomlin's Biggest Flaw

The Pittsburgh Steelers are entering a new era of football, bringing in hometown coach Mike McCarthy to try and trend this organization in a different direction. One of the most important first moves he made was bringing in Patrick Graham to serve as the new defensive coordinator, brining significant changes on both sides of the ball.

Some players have expressed their excitement after the team moved on from Teryl Austin, really shedding some light on what the future may hold defensively. Austin apparently wasn't the only thing holding the defense back from playing to its best ability. Mike Tomlin also played a significant role on that side of the ball, similarly as to what McCarthy does with the offense. 

In terms of personnel, the players that the 2026 team has versus what Tomlin worked with defensively were pretty similar. Talking specifically in the corner back room, there was always size to work with, setting up the ability to work more physical man coverage. 

That worked on one side of the ball with Joey Porter Jr., but they never were consistent with that game on the other side. There were some other factors from coaching that prevented that. The age of key corners Patrick Peterson and Darius Slay affected that too, but in general, they never maximized that part of the secondary as often as they could have.

With the signing of Jamel Dean and bringing in Graham, that could change in 2026. Steelers' insider Ray Fittipaldo wrote about how that could change this season on defense and better utilize the talent that they have. 

"Defensive coordinator Patrick Graham would like to play aggressively with his two corners and have Porter and Dean use their size to their advantage in press coverage," Fittipaldo wrote. "That was always the plan when Tomlin was the coach, but it never materialized. Peterson and Slay were too old to hold up outside, and younger draftees never worked out. The most promising was Cory Trice Jr., but injuries were a constant hurdle for him. The Steelers released him in the spring."

There were a handful of factors as to why the Steelers didn't successfully work that constant press coverage. The age of Peterson and Slay is one thing, just bringing in the wrong guys for the scheme they were trying to run. Then bringing in young players that showed promise, but they failed to develop them. 

That is something this no staff is trying to change and be more aggressive with in play calling. Porter and Dean are both lanky corners that make it difficult for receivers to get separation and make contested catches. That's why man-to-man with these players can be really slow down a pass game, but evidently it wasn't utilized to the best of its abilities under Tomlin. 

Using Porter as an example, he has never been a high interception player. Perhaps with more press coverage like this, Porter can add that to his game and be an even bigger threat for the Steelers. He's complemented with a great corner in Dean this year, compared to what he's worked with in the past, so that should help this defense too. 

Steelers' Graham May Make Porter A Lot Better

As Porter looks to land a big contract, this year under Graham may help him climb the rankings as one of the best corners in the league. Some leave him out of the rankings because of his low interception rates, but with Graham and this different approach from Tomlin, Porter may finally be able to put up those numbers that are holding him back. That would be a major upgrade for this defense that depends on him to make those big plays in the pass game.

#SteelerNation