First up, we gave you our top players on the offensive side of the ball for the Pittsburgh Steelers and now we turn to the defense. A huge reason the Steelers were in the playoff hunt down the stretch was the play of the defense, in particular stopping the run and creating turnovers. Which defender is on top? Read on and find out.
1-DT Cam Heyward
The ageless wonder Cam Heyward had one of his best seasons with 10.5 sacks and 14 tackles for loss.
2-S Minkah Fitzpatrick
Minkah Fitzpatrick returned to his All-Pro form in 2022 and led the league with six interceptions.
3-CB Cameron Sutton
Cameron Sutton showed immense growth and by mid-season stepped into the role of the team’s No. 1 cornerback. Sutton had three interceptions and shut down several of the best receivers in the AFC.
4-LB Alex Highsmith
With T.J. Watt out hurt, Alex Highsmith had a breakout season. 14.5 sacks with sixth-best in the NFL and he also chipped in 63 tackles and five forced fumbles.
5-LB Robert Spillane
Spillane finished fourth on the team with 79 tackles despite only starting five games. He was the team’s best run stuffer at linebacker all season and raised the bar for physicality on defense.
6-LB T.J. Watt
It’s hard to quantify the season of T.J. Watt due to missing seven games with a partially torn pectoral. The numbers weren’t great but he gets this spot because when he was on the field, the team wins and the defense takes everything up a notch.
7-CB Levi Wallace
There were several guys I considered for this including linebacker Myles Jack who led the team in tackles or safety Terrell Edmunds who had another fine all-around season. But we settled on Levi Wallace who came in and after Ahkello Witherspoon went down, Wallace really stepped up.
