Steelers LB Myles Jack's Initial Thoughts on Devin Bush, Brian Flores

The Pittsburgh Steelers new linebacker is ready for whatever the team asks.

PITTSBURGH -- Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Myles Jack never imagined that he'd be here. In 2018, he and the Jacksonville Jaguars came into Heinz Field as one-touchdown underdogs in the Divisional Round of the AFC playoffs. They upset the Steelers, 45-42 to earn their first conference championship game berth in 18 years. 

Jack, who signed a two-year contract worth up to $16 million with Pittsburgh this offseason, still remembers that game, and what it felt like to take down one of the NFL's most prominent franchises as a member of one of its newest and lowliest teams. 

“At that point in time, [the Steelers] were the distinguished team and we were kind of like the new young kids on the block so we were just excited to kind of dethrone them and see how far we could take that. Because at that moment in time, we felt invincible.”

They were not invincible, even though it looked that way for another three quarters. 

At Gillette Stadium, facing the Patriots in the AFC Championship game, Jack and his Jaguars carried a 10-point lead into the fourth quarter. The end result - a dramatic, last-ditch comeback win engineered by the ageless Tom Brady - was almost undone by a forced fumble and recovery from Jack early in the fourth quarter. 

As he grabbed the ball and accelerated towards the endzone, officials ruled that he was, in fact, down and confirmed it upon review. Instead of a momentum-shifting scoop-and-score, the Jaguars only got the ball back at their own 33-yard line and ended up punting after three plays.

“You know how it goes — you win some, you lose some. I definitely wish they had let me take that back, for sure.”

Four years later, that playoff run is well in the back of his mind. Jack has a fresh start in Pittsburgh and is beginning to mesh with the established core of backers, particularly Devin Bush, who's helped familiarize his new teammate with the playbook. 

“It’s been good," Jack said about his relationship with Bush. "We’ve been able to collaborate on a bunch of things. He’s obviously been here, so he’s bringing me up to speed on how he plays certain things in the playbook so it’s been cool.”

As the new guy, Jack doesn't want to step on anyone's toes. On Wednesday at OTAs, he said that he'll be flexible - willing to play and do whatever his team and coaches ask. 

Part of his willingness to be versatile stems from trust in the entire unit. Jack said he's now "a part of something great" and believes that the coaches, and first-year linebackers coach Brian Flores in particular, will give him every opportunity to be successful. 

Jack said Flores' straightforward and demanding nature makes it easier for him to make quick decisions. The fact that the Steelers hired Flores is, after all, one of the primary reasons Jack chose to sign with Pittsburgh. 

"I just think coach Flores - obviously he’s a head coach, so his perspective and approach to things is going to be more clear-cut. This is what it is, this is what it’s not and I enjoy that. I know exactly what I’m doing so I can play faster.”

Jack is clearly taking some pressure off of himself. He's not pressing for responsibility or demanding that he play a certain way. 

"If they need me to cover or run sideline-to-sideline or whatever — if it’s third and one and I’ve got to go hit an A-gap or a B-gap, I love that so it’s all good," Jack said.

Instead, he has deferred to the established pieces of what he thinks is an already tremendous defense.

“I’m a part of something great, so all I have to do is make sure I do my part," Jack said. "Everyone else already knows what they’re doing, so it’s great.”

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