Ordinarily, teams might be prone to way until the regular season to break out a look that they had not previously shown in the preseason or in open practice sessions before. The Pittsburgh Steelers elected to do that against the Kansas City Chiefs—perhaps in part influenced by the quality of opponent—breaking out a three-safety nickel defense that they had not shown in training camp.
As Mike Hilton tells Ray Fittipaldo, “It was something we kind of kept to ourselves in camp, but I think it’s something we’re going to use throughout the season”.