PITTSBURGH - For a man who spends hours a day teaching his Pittsburgh Steelers defensive players all about pressure, Dick LeBeau doesn't seem to feel any himself.

Now 67, one of the NFL's most experienced defensive coordinators no longer stays in the game because he has something to prove, but mostly for the enjoyment of teaching defense and competing in games.

The pressure to prove he is worthy of being an NFL head coach? That's gone. The pressure to prove his zone-blitz system is a keeper? It has been copied widely throughout the NFL for more than 10 years, a testament to the endurance of the defense and of its designer.

Maybe that's why LeBeau seems to be enjoying himself so much this season, and not just because the Steelers are 4-1 going into Sunday's game at Dallas and his defense is a very big part of that turnaround.

"We asked him why he's so laid-back and calm," linebacker James Farrior said. "He's not like other coaches at times. He doesn't really get all up in your face and he's not a rah-rah guy. One day he told us, `I'm fine with my life right now. I don't worry about the small stuff anymore.' "

LeBeau, the primary designer of the widely copied Blitzburgh zone-blitz defense of the mid 1990s, was rehired by coach Bill Cowher to bring back the very pressure that once was the trademark of the Steelers' defense.

The Steelers got away from those pressure schemes a year ago when they had only 35 sacks and 25 turnovers forced during a 6-10 season - both statistical lows since Cowher's hiring in 1992. Former defensive coordinator Tim Lewis, now with the Giants, made the system less risky after the Steelers had so much trouble defending against the pass in 2002. Then, offenses frequently took advantage of the single coverage that sometimes occurs in a zone blitz system.

Now, the pressure the Steelers are applying is way up, and they already have nearly half as many turnovers forced as they did all last season. The Steelers put so much heat on the Browns' Jeff Garcia on Sunday that coach Butch Davis later said his quarterback became skittish in the pocket.

"We had him on the ground a lot, and he is a mobile guy," Cowher said. "We probably have pressured more than we had to this point a year ago. I think it is the makeup of coach LeBeau and, as long as they (the blitzes) are working, (let's) keep calling them."

That's exactly why Cowher brought back LeBeau, who had returned to his native Cincinnati in 1997 to be closer to his family. He was the Bengals' coach for most of three seasons from 2000-02, earning praise for keeping his teams together and competitive despite their 12-33 record.

Now, he is back in Pittsburgh and so is the zone blitz, which is designed to bring consistent pressure from different angles yet still protect all areas of the field. Linebackers sometimes drop in coverage to replace cornerbacks who blitz and defensive linemen occasionally slip into coverage lanes.

"It's pretty much the same defense on many occasions (as before). ... We've continued to grow and expand our thoughts and ideas," LeBeau said.

Cowboys quarterback Vinny Testaverde certainly is versed in the ways of LeBeau's defense. He saw all the zone blitzes he could ever want to see as the Browns' quarterback in the mid 1990s and later with the Jets, going 2-10 against Pittsburgh with 18 interceptions.

Testaverde now gets to see the updated version of the defense that has frustrated him for so long.

"We try to keep on the cutting edge if we can and try to show them (the offense) something they haven't seen," LeBeau said.