When it comes to their starting safeties, the Pittsburgh Steelers have gone through Plan A, Plan B, Plan C, and Plan D due to injuries. However, coach Mike Tomlin has found a combination that works.

Veteran Jalen Ramsey started at free safety, and trade acquisition Kyle Dugger made his Steelers' debut as the starting strong safety in a 27-20 victory over the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday at Acrisure Stadium. They are listed as first-teamers on the depth chart for Sunday night's game against the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif.

A rash of injuries at safety has hit the Steelers. Starting strong safety DeShon Elliott was placed on injured reserve last week, while backups Chuck Clark (illness) and Jabrill Peppers (quadriceps) also missed the win over the Colts, who had the best record in the NFL at 7-1.

However, Ramsey and Dugger, acquired from the New England Patriots in a trade earlier in the week, helped the Steelers hold the highest-scoring team in the league to two touchdowns. Jonathan Taylor, the NFL's top rusher, had just 45 yards on 14 carries.

"It's the National Football League," Tomlin said on Tuesday during his weekly news conference. "You better have a hardcore plan and be light on your feet. I'm certainly thankful that we acquired Kyle Dugger. He's a quick study."

Tomlin raved about Dugger's play after Sunday's game and awarded him a game ball. Tomlin was still excited on Tuesday about how quickly Dugger learned the playbook despite having just two full practices with the Steelers.

"I didn't think there was any lack of fluidity in his movement, whether it was pre-snap adjustments or things that happened at the snap, and I think oftentimes that's an indicator of understanding," Tomlin said. "I certainly didn't expect him to be a hub of communication. Communication was probably going to be one-sided. But just in general, in terms of putting eyes on him, his fluidity of movement, adjusting the pre-snap shifts and motions, and the hair-trigger that you saw at or just instantly after the snap gave me an indication that he was comfortable, he knew what he was looking at, and that he was going to be OK."

Ramsey has been more than OK after the Steelers acquired him and tight end Jonnu Smith from the Miami Dolphins in an offseason trade for safety Minkah Fitzpatrick. Ramsey, a four-time All-Pro cornerback, has been thrust into a safety role and has played well, including making five tackles against the Colts.

"It's just his relationship with the game," Tomlin said. "I think some of the things that you talk about when you first talk about the safety position are intangible qualities that are not necessarily things that you measure. He's got really good instincts. He's got really good passion for the game. He studies the game. And I think those are some things that really enable him to play back there, and that's such a major component of that position.

"His talents are obvious: his tackling, his range, his physicality. But the more subtle things, the intangible things are the things that are exciting for us, because as he gains more experience back there, it's reasonable to expect some of those talents to show up more frequently."