For the second straight week, the Pittsburgh Steelers have given up more than 30 points. Unfortunately, the offense couldn’t oblige the Seahawks a shootout the same way they did the Jets last week. For the Steelers to have a fighting chance this season, the team needs to figure out how to stop the run more effectively.

Linebacker Payton Wilson spoke on the team's failure to reach their potential through two weeks after Sunday’s loss, saying that "We have some of the most talented guys to ever play their positions in here. For it to happen to them, for me to miss an assignment, and some of these guys, they're the best in the world. You don't want that to happen "

Steelers defensive coordinator Teryl Austin has no shortage of star power to work with, and he’ll need to figure out the best way to use it; Pittsburgh has a number of dangerous running threats on the schedule coming up. Here are three potential adjustments that we could see from Austin and company in the coming weeks.

Move T.J. Watt Around

Watt’s ability to take over a game is well documented, but he has yet to record a sack this year. It’s not that he’s necessarily playing poorly ... he’s simply being avoided at all costs by offensive coordinators. Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III went for 105 yards on Sunday without going anywhere near Watt, opting instead to attack the opposite side of the Steelers defense to great effect.

If the Steelers want to properly utilize their superstar, he has to be more than an expensive roadblock. Bringing him over to the other side of the line, designing plays for him to move towards the middle of the line, and disguising the rush in different schemes will prevent opposing offenses from getting too comfortable and allow Watt to get more involved in the action. Especially with the ankle injury to co-star Alex Highsmith on Sunday, there will be plenty of opportunity for Watt to take snaps on the opposite side as Highsmith recovers. We could also see more looks from a 4-3 set (as opposed to Austin’s usual 3-4) in order to focus on challenging the run.

Play the Waiting Game

No small part of the Steelers’ defensive woes are due to the injury bug. The debut of DT Derrick Harmon becomes more highly anticipated with each passing game, as the rookie’s addition to the lineup will be a key part of this unit’s improvement going forward. The aforementioned Highsmith injury, along with another injury to Isaiahh Loudermilk, only adds to issues among the Steelers front seven. Pittsburgh is also missing key support from the secondary in Joey Porter Jr. and DeShon Eliott. Will the return of all of these players provide a miraculous fix for the run defense? Probably not, but it certainly won’t hurt to have a talented unit back to full strength.

Send for Reinforcements

If the Steelers don’t believe in their current squad to get the job done (or they have more complications with injuries), it might be time for GM Omar Khan to go shopping. While the Steelers have all of their 2026 draft picks and a modest amount of cap space to play with, we don’t know how aggressive Khan is willing to be, especially in the middle of the season. Cardinals DT PJ Mustipher is a possible target for the front four. If Tomlin likes his chances with a flier on Packers linebacker Isaiah Simmons, he shouldn’t demand too steep a price either. In either case, Pittsburgh will look for cheap additions to one of the most expensive defenses in the league, as it would be hard to justify throwing even more money at their issues without seeing any result.