This year, the Pittsburgh Steelers’ defense has gotten off to a slow start. In both their games, they’ve been punched in the mouth, which is not up to their standard. The Steelers usually have one of the best defenses in the league, and it’s not like they lack talent, either. Despite the Steelers’ defensive struggles, New England Patriots wide receiver Stefon Diggs is prepared for an intense matchup.
“I look forward to going out there this week as well,” Diggs said Wednesday via the team’s YouTube channel. “They got a lot of players over there that can fly around. I don’t wanna single anybody out, but that Steelers defense, you know what it’s known for. Gotta buckle up.”
That goes to show how deeply rooted the Steelers’ defense’s reputation is. Even though they’re struggling, Diggs isn’t taking them lightly. He’s been in the league since 2015, and he’s had a handful of battles against the Steelers. Therefore, he’s got plenty of firsthand experience to draw on.
In his career, Diggs has played against the Steelers five times, including one playoff matchup. He’s had some explosive performances against them, too. The last time he played them was in 2022 when he was with the Buffalo Bills. He put up eight catches for 102 yards and one touchdown against the Steelers in that game, with Buffalo crushing Pittsburgh.
That wasn’t the only time Diggs lit Pittsburgh up, either. He put up some insane stats against them in 2020 as well.
While Diggs isn’t that same player, it goes to show that he’s got experience beating the Steelers’ physical defense. During that same video, Diggs went into a little more detail on Jalen Ramsey, whom he should match up against this week.
“[Ramsey’s] a hell of a player. He’s been in the league for a long time. I’ve been in for a long time, too, so I’ve been watching him for a long time. He’s been in a couple places, and he’s never been anything less than a hell of a player. He’s very smart, distinctive, aggressive.”
The Steelers’ defense has been disappointing this year, but Ramsey hasn’t been the reason. He made one of the team’s most significant plays in Week 1, and he also recorded his first interception with the team in Week 2. Ramsey has brought a lot of physicality to the Steelers’ defense.
He’s battled Diggs plenty of times over the years, too. Not all those games have gone great for Ramsey’s team, either. Diggs posted eight catches for 122 yards and one touchdown against Ramsey and the Los Angeles Rams in 2022.
This upcoming matchup should be very different, though. Both players are older and in their first year with new teams. Additionally, both are trying to bounce back after down 2024 seasons, too. Even if the rest of the Steelers’ defense still struggles, Diggs should get a taste of the physicality they’re known for when he lines up across from Ramsey.
