They have the best individual defensive player in the NFL, but it’s becoming more than one episode of The TJ Watt Show after another. The 2024 Steelers defense is talented, and that’s the main reason the team is off to a 2-0 start for the first time since 2020. It also looks like it’s developing into more than a one-man gang.

“They have to be a catalyst for us,” coach Mike Tomlin said of his defense, “and they know that.”

The defense could be viewed as the catalyst for Sunday’s 13-6 win over the Broncos in Denver, a week after also playing a role in the 18-10 win over the Falcons in Atlanta. Or perhaps it’s more accurate to view this unit as their safety reserve.

A safety net of sorts, because even with minimal offensive performance – 13 points, 1 touchdown, a week after 18 points, 1 touchdown – there is a growing feeling that everything will be fine as long as no one makes a mistake that puts the defense in a really bad position or – even worse – that shows up directly on the scoreboard as a defensive touchdown.

“We have an experienced group,” Tomlin said matter-of-factly. “To be honest, we’ve added a lot of talent over the years. I expected (this level of performance). It’s appreciated, but definitely expected.”

This was to be expected and also necessary, especially this early in the season and in a process that has produced a new offensive coordinator, three new quarterbacks and a new assistant coach to work with them, young offensive linemen who are either rookies or new to the starting lineup or both, and a group of wide receivers without proven depth behind George Pickens and a number of tight ends without the same depth behind Pat Freiermuth.

This offense is neither superb nor relentlessly efficient, and certainly not productive. The next category depends on how you perceive their near-misses, used here as a term for the few plays that were affected/nullified by penalties. Do you view them as evidence of an impending/imminent turnaround, or an indictment of a unit that continues to do the same self-destructive things in games that we first saw in the season opener in early August?

In the Steelers’ second series, for example, Justin Fields managed a 12-play, 78-yard run that historians will record as the first touchdown of the 2024 regular season. Anyone who counts style points has to admit that it was well done.

Fields converted both third downs of the drive, once to give the possession some momentum and the second to put an exclamation point on it at the end. His 13-yard pass to Pickens converted a third-and-5 from the 27-yard line; his shoulder toss to Darnell Washington in the end zone was the way the ball needed to be placed depending on coverage, and then it got a whole lot prettier when the guy known for his blocks made one of those nifty hand catches usually made by tight ends who make big money and/or are parading a billionaire pop star around town.

In between, the offensive line shook off Jaylen Warren on three runs for 18 yards, plus a couple of plays where Fields flashed the rare skills that ultimately earned him the 11th pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. He used his feet to exploit a gap in the pass rush and capitalized on it for 16 yards, and then he was on time and accurate to Freiermuth for a 14-yard pass that got the Steelers close enough to go to Washington on the back-shoulder fade.

The sum of that possession seemed to give cause for hope, as Chris Boswell’s PAT sailed between the posts with 1:56 left in the first quarter to give them a 7-0 lead. But it was just a disappointment.

Even as the offense beat itself down with holding penalties that wiped out large swathes of the field, turned promising possessions into another of eight punts by recently signed Corliss Waitman, and then upped the ante with an offensive pass interference penalty that cost a touchdown, the defense was there. It was there to confuse and confound rookie quarterback Bo Nix and, in turn, frustrate coach and playmaker Sean Payton.

The perfect example of this came midway through the third quarter with the Steelers leading 10-0. Payton reached into his bag of tricks and pulled out a rabbit in the form of a direct snap to running back RB Javonte Williams, who then pitched to Nix, originally lined up wide outside, who then threw the ball forward where WR Josh Reynolds completed the play for a 49-yard gain to the 7-yard line. What made matters worse was that CB Donte Jackson was shaken up on the play and had to be replaced by Cory Trice Jr., whose entire regular season resume only included those 7 defensive snaps he played in the opener against the Falcons.

However, on his second snap of the game, which happened to be the ninth of his career, Trice reacted to having no receivers near him by sliding toward the middle of the end zone, where he was in perfect position to get between Nix and his intended target: WR Courtland Sutton. And the cherry on top was that when Nix threw the ball anyway, Trice made the interception like a seasoned ball chaser.

“We felt like we were able to apply pressure all day, and for Cory to make a play like that at a crucial moment was big,” Watt said, “but we’re not surprised. We love making plays. We love seeing who makes plays. We know there are plays that need to be made, but we try hard not to do more than we’re supposed to. We trust each other, and I think we’re only going to get better as a defense.”

There were other examples – a game-winning interception by Damontae Kazee, and Isaiahh Loudermilk picking up a paw and batting a ball at the line of scrimmage on a third-and-6 from the 16-yard line, turning a potential disaster into a red zone field goal. Add to that the typical Watt plays, a sack and two tackles for a loss by Alex Highsmith, DeShon Elliott getting to the ball often enough to lead the team with 9 tackles, and Joey Porter Jr. turning Courtland Sutton into another player who ranked fifth on his team in receptions, and that was good enough.

It was good enough because Fields didn’t lose the ball and Smith’s plays did their part to limit the likelihood of that happening. It’s unrealistic to expect such a formula to continue to produce regular-season wins, but in the meantime, it works. What is certain is that the formula’s shelf life is not long enough for the Steelers to rack up enough wins to get to the postseason and win there.

But as they continue to work on making the offense more efficient and productive, this is the result.

“I always demand more from (the defense) because they have a lot to give,” Tomlin said. “When the offense is faced with some of the challenges it faces in terms of non-starters in the lineup and hostile environments, (the defense) obviously knows that.”

And what’s even better than knowing that is bringing in more capable people who can do their part.