Worilds' presence boosts Steelers' defense in Woodley's absence

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By Alan Robinson

The Steelers are finally seeing what they expected of Jason Worilds when they first drafted him four years ago.

And just when they're not sure how much longer they'll be seeing him in their uniform.

No doubt the Steelers were concerned about how effective their already-inconsistent pass rush would be when LaMarr Woodley — who had five sacks in his first six games — injured a calf Nov. 10 against Buffalo.

But in the two games since Woodley was replaced by Worilds, a 2010 second-round pick, they have mounted far more pressure than they have all season.

On Sunday, they had five sacks and six hits on Browns quarterbacks Jason Campbell and Brandon Weeden — with all six hits by Worilds. Against the Lions and Browns, they had a combined seven sacks and 17 QB hurries, or exactly the kind of pressure they weren't getting early in the season.

Worilds has 10 quarterback hits in those two games, or more than Woodley has had in any of his last four seasons.

“It's fun to be out there,” Worilds said Monday. “Being out there on the field consistently kind of opened up some doors.”

Especially, it seems, the one that leads to the quarterback.

This consistent pressure has led to the Steelers allowing only a meaningless touchdown and 11 points in their past six quarters.

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A few weeks ago everyone was throwing rocks at Kevin Colbert for drafting a lot of busts lately like Worilds and Heyward. It was hard not to think of them as busts (especially Worilds). Right now they might be the two best players (not named Troy) on defense. It's funny how things work out sometimes.

Let's face it, the injury bug has settled in Pittsburgh over the last several years, even our last SB season was plagued with injuries. The Steelers have battled, valiantly, and the next man up has performed well under those circumstances.

Unfortunately, not everyone who dons the Steelers jersey will be able to stay. Could Worild have put himself in a position to make it difficult to cut him? Or is his asking price or selling price going to be too high for the Steelers to pay?