Ryan Shazier’s performance versus the Bengals last Saturday in the Wild Card was very impressive. In this game, he collected 13 tackles, two forced fumbles, two tackles for loss, and two pass deflections. Additionally, he was used to rush the passer mainly in the 4th quarter. In this breakdown, we will take a look at all three phases of his game, and discuss how he used his physical skill-set along with form technique to make plays to secure the victory and help the Steelers move on to the AFC Divisional round.
Run Defense
In run defense, Shazier stood out as one of the best defenders on the field collecting two tackles for loss with his 13 tackles on the day. The first play we will look at happened with 5:16 left in the first quarter.
In this play, the Bengals attempt to run a power G-lead where they pull both the backside and the strongside guard to block for #32 Jeremy Hill. Shazier is initially watching the strongside A-gap between the right guard and the center, but since the right guard pulls to lead block, Shazier’s new responsibility is the gap between the down-blocking tight end (Eifert) and the right guard on the strongside of the formation.… Article continues here