The offseason additions of inside linebacker Patrick Queen and strong safety DeShon Elliott could prove to be a win-win not only by making the Steelers that much stronger, but also by sapping some defensive strength and savvy from the rival Ravens.
Queen is being handed the keys to the Steelers defense. As the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports, the inside linebacker will be wearing the green dot on his helmet, designating that Queen will have a direct link with coaches on the sideline as he calls the Steelers defensive plays on the field. The hope is Queen can be the sideline-to-sideline difference-maker in the middle of the field that the Steelers have lacked since Ryan Shazier went down with a career-ending spinal injury in December 2017. It’s no coincidence the Steelers have the priciest defense in the NFL.
Stars are everywhere on this side of the ball – TJ Watt, Minkah Fitzpatrick, Cameron Heyward, Alex Highsmith and Joey Porter Jr. – just to name a few. Still, the Steelers doubled down on Queen, locking him up for three years at $41 million, with nearly $14 million fully guaranteed. In for a penny, in for a pound. But Pittsburgh wasn’t done purloining former Ravens. The team also brought in one of Queen’s best friends, too, in the form of strong safety DeShon Elliott. Elliott, 27, spent just two years playing alongside Queen in Baltimore, but the chemistry and communication they built now gets imported to ‘Burgh.
The pair hope to pick up right where they left off. The Steelers didn’t even have to court Elliot to come to Pittsburgh. After watching his former teammate make the move, he decided he wanted to be in the 412-area code as well, signing with the team some 48 hours later. Such is the story of how two Ravens flew the coup to come to the Steel City. You love to see it. This is how the stout Steelers are doubling down on their biggest strength – defense, now playoff caliber for sure.
The only question is, whether the offense can hold its own and eek out those close-game wins. We shall see. We have much more on the summer run up to the July 24th start of training camp for your Steelers in this anticipation-filled edition of your Steelers Update Podcast. Be sure to check out my full print column first thing Thursday on PennLive. As usual, it will be packed with plenty of memes bringing all the latest greatest Steelers debates to life and to laughs.
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