A month before the draft, an either-or question was put to Steelers coach Mike Tomlin over breakfast in Palm Beach, Fla.

Great pass rusher or great secondary?

"Great pass rusher," Tomlin quickly answered, "because the ball never comes out."

Last season, the Steelers got neither, at least statistically. Although Kevin Colbert, their director of football operations, said before the season began that the team needed a better pass rush in 2007, its sacks dropped by three, from 39 to 36. That was nothing compared to the drop in interceptions -- the Steelers had 11 interceptions last season, down from 20 in 2006 and tied for fewest in the NFL.

Clearly, a good pass rush and good coverage go hand in hand, and sometimes it's a chicken-and-egg question of which comes first. Tomlin comes down heavily on the side of the pass rush.

"I have a passion for those rushers, man," he said. "Those guys are unique animals, man. When you have them, you have a chance to play great defense, and when you have a chance to play great defense, you have a chance to win. When you look at some of the great teams in the history of our game or the great defenses in the history of our game, they have dominant men up front."

The Steelers have done nothing to change the look of their aging defensive line since last season. Their top six players in their three-man line remain the same and will range in age from 30 to 34 by September. However, when Tomlin speaks about his front, it includes seven and not three because generally in a 3-4 defense, linebackers deliver most of the sacks.

And that's where the Steelers will have a change next season, perhaps by as much as half.

LaMarr Woodley, the team's most productive pass rusher per play as a rookie last season, will get a chance to become the starting left outside linebacker. Lawrence Timmons, the team's first-round draft pick in 2007, will compete with starting inside linebacker Larry Foote for that job.

Woodley played in just 80 snaps last season, a little more than one full game. Yet he had four sacks -- the same as starter Clark Haggans -- and five quarterback hurries/pressures. He chipped in another two sacks against Jacksonville in the Steelers' lone playoff game. Compare that with starting right outside linebacker James Harrison, who played every game and rarely missed a snap. He led the Steelers with 8.5 sacks and added another 1.5 in the playoffs as he earned his first Pro Bowl honor and was voted Steelers' MVP by his teammates.

The presence of a younger, better pass rusher on the left in Woodley could help Harrison's production. And the extremely quick Timmons could complement them from the inside, if he plays as his coaches believe he can.

The Steelers' first two draft choices last year are ready to pay off.

"We're looking for what we look for from all second-year players, which is to take a giant step," Tomlin said after last weekend's minicamp. "It's been proven over time that guys show the ability to take a giant step from year one to year two. Familiarity is an issue, an understanding of what's required, an understanding of what lies ahead are all factors in them doing that.

"They've shown thus far that they're capable of doing that. We like where they are. The athleticism and talent that attracted us to them originally are showing through. They have to continue to move forward, and I'm pleased with what those guys have been doing in the offseason program. Their faces are in the building, they're working at it. They're learning how to become professionals."

There's also rookie Bruce Davis, the team's third-round draft choice from UCLA. Typically, the Steelers drafted players such as Davis, an undersized 4-3 defensive end in college, and converted them to outside linebackers. Joey Porter, Jason Gildon and Haggans are but several who followed that path. It usually takes them a year or so to make the transformation. In the meantime, the Steelers plan to use Davis, 6-3, 252 pounds, in some pass-rush situations, perhaps how they used Woodley last season. Davis had 24.5 sacks the past two seasons at UCLA.

"He is a highly productive guy, as productive as any college rush-man the last two years," Tomlin said.

The Steelers have a long history of leaving their outside linebackers in the game the whole way for the whole season. In some cases, particularly that of Haggans, they wore down and were less effective.

Davis might help keep the starters fresh and become part of an energized pass rush that softened the past two seasons.