Right this moment, I wished to take a look at how run defenses, specifically the Pittsburgh Steelers, have fared via Week 8. I’ll take a look at success charges by down, sport halves, weekly views, and another features as effectively. Let’s soar proper in.
First, let’s take a look at early down-success charges leaguewide (with scrambles, kneels, and aborted/penalty performs excluded):
- First Down Speeding Success = A rush that features lower than 40% of the wanted yardage.
- Second Down Speeding Success = A rush that features lower than 50% of the wanted yardage.
Pittsburgh’s protection has been one of many NFL’s greatest items at stopping the run on first down, a 60.0-percent success price that ranks third-best via eight video games. That’s fairly spectacular, stifling the opposition total and making for harder conditions on following down and distances. Nothing new, fortunately, because the Steelers additionally ranked third in an identical research via Week 16 of 2023.
The flipside is that the Steelers have been leakier on second downs this season. Their below-the-mean 43.3-percent success price is noticeably decrease and ranks 18th. This has soured the encouraging first-down outcomes and supplied extra advantageous late-down alternatives for the opposition. Apparently, the Steelers additionally struggled in 2023, rating twentieth via the vast majority of final season.
Let’s see how they’ve fared on late downs, the place third and fourth downs that don’t decide up a primary down are thought-about profitable:
As anticipated, Pittsburgh’s protection usually steps up in situational soccer, rising to the event on late downs with a 54.4-percent success price, seventh-best within the NFL. That is the most important distinction from 2023 up to now, when the Steelers ranked twentieth on late downs in my final research I’ve been referencing.
That’s nice information and hopefully continues the remainder of 2024. This can be crucial as Pittsburgh’s protection is about to face the highest three offenses in dashing yards via Week 9 (pre-Monday Evening Soccer): Baltimore twice (Weeks 11 and 16), Washington (Sunday) and Philadelphia (Week 15).
Listed here are the entire success charges now that we’ve gained context by down:
General, issues are sitting fairly in comparison with the remainder of the NFL for the Steelers’ run protection. Their 53.5-percent whole success price in 2024 ranks sixth, in comparison with tenth the final time I regarded on the numbers in 2023. It will certainly be wanted for the second half of the season to go as swimmingly as Pittsburgh wishes, and right here’s to hoping for simply that.
Subsequent, let’s see how defenses have carried out by sport halves (second half contains additional time):
Whereas there have been a number of slow-starting parts of this Steelers workforce, we will see that run protection hasn’t been one in every of them. Comfortably above common in each halves, with a 52.9-percent first-half success price and 54.1 % within the second half, every rating tenth. Seeing their higher quantity late in video games is unsurprising, once more tightening up in situational soccer.
Now, let’s take a look at the weekly numbers for added context:
General, we see that Pittsburgh has largely been above the road most of the time, which is smart from the earlier views.
The season opener was by far the Steelers’ worst mark of 2024, with a 38.1-percent success price towards Atlanta that ranked twenty fifth. The Falcons had 89 dashing yards on the day, 69 from RB Bijan Robinson (3.8 YPA) with RB Tyler Allgeier including 21 on simply three carries (7.0 YPA). The Steelers bent however didn’t break on this regard, not impacting the scoreboard of their 18-10 win.
Then we noticed a gentle optimistic development the following two weeks. Pittsburgh’s 52.9-percent success price ranked twelfth in Week 2 (13-6 win), limiting Denver RBs to simply 39 yards (2.6 YPA). The Steelers notably stifled lead again Javonte Williams on 11 carries (1.5 YPA). RB Tyler Badie did have a 16-yard chunk run although. QB Bo Nix had a team-leading 25 dashing yards.
Whereas the primary purpose of the article was non-scramble runs, this made me curious to take a fast take a look at how Pittsburgh’s protection has fared towards scrambles in 2024:
The Steelers impressively have the NFL’s greatest 60.0-percent success price towards scrambles via Week 8. Nix having probably the most yards towards them so far. Some QBs with that capacity too: Nix (25 yards), Chargers’ Justin Herbert (0 yards although he performed on a sprained ankle earlier than leaving the sport after aggravating the harm), Colts’ Anthony Richardson (24 yards earlier than he left the sport with an harm), Cowboys’ Dak Prescott (3 yards), and Giants’ Daniel Jones (1 yard).
The upcoming schedule has harder exams, although, with three top-five QBs in dashing yards: Ravens’ Lamar Jackson, Commanders’ Jayden Daniels, and Eagles’ Jalen Hurts. That’s regarding, however a caveat is that Nix, Richardson, and Jones are all prime 10 too and Pittsburgh restricted them. Remaining robust towards scrambles is a large key transferring ahead.
Again to the weekly non-scramble success charges. In Week 3 towards the Chargers (20-10 win), Pittsburgh posted its greatest success price of 2024 (68.4 %). This was fourth-best of the week, and fifteenth leaguewide within the span (over 250 video games). That spectacular efficiency restricted the Chargers to solely 61 dashing yards, with a team-leading 44 yards from RB J.Okay. Dobbins (2.9 YPA).
Then a gentle down development on throughout Pittsburgh’s two-game dropping streak. Week 4 towards the Colts was nonetheless above the road, with a pleasant 60.0-percent success price. Whereas that appears encouraging, that quantity doesn’t inform the complete story. The Steelers gave up 133 dashing yards, specifically 88 towards RB Jonathan Taylor (4.2 YPA) and a landing. Clearly an element within the 27-24 loss.
Pittsburgh adopted that with solely its second below-the-line (50 %) success price. That quantity got here in at 48.3 in Week 5 towards the Cowboys (20-17 loss), the Steelers permitting 99 dashing yards.
Throughout Pittsburgh’s present three-game profitable streak, the primary two video games featured good success charges in run protection: 57.9 % towards the Raiders in a 32-13 Week 6 victory. The Steelers allowed simply 57 dashing yards, limiting major again Alexander Mattison to 33 (2.4 YPA). RB Ameer Abdullah did have 24 yards on 4 carries (6.0 YPA) although, however the run protection was largely robust in a dominant win.
Week 7 towards the Jets was an identical 57.1 success price regardless of them getting up early on the scoreboard. Simply 54 whole rush yards allowed with gifted lead again Breece Corridor’s 38 yards (3.2 YPA) main the Jets. The unhealthy information was that he had a 13-yard dashing TD. RB Isaiah Davis had a 12-yard run, however that got here on the final play of the sport with the 37-15 Steelers victory effectively in hand.
The Steelers’ Week 8 26-18 win towards the Giants was beneath the road, for simply the third time in 2024. That 47.8-percent success price in run protection ranked tied for fifteenth of the week, clearly worse than the vast majority of the season.
I anticipated that price to be even worse contemplating Pittsburgh allowed probably the most workforce dashing yards (157) on the season to a workforce that had the least dashing yards heading into the sport. RB Tyrone Tracy dominated with 145 yards (7.3 YPA) and a TD.
A discouraging outlier efficiency by the Steelers’ run protection towards a fifth-round rookie again who’s not precisely a family identify (respectfully). Pittsburgh allowed a fourth-quarter 45-yard TD run to Tracy, letting the Giants inch nearer in what had been a pleasant 23-9 lead.
That double-explosive run bought me curious to see how the Steelers have fared in permitting explosive runs with scrambles included:
The Steelers have solely allowed three explosive runs in 2024, tied for fourth fewest. Two got here within the Week 4 loss to the Colts with Taylor and QB Joe Flacco every having a 21 yarder. The Tracy 45 yarder was the one different. The recency of that’s in fact painful, however Pittsburgh limiting explosive runs higher than most groups via eight video games is hopefully the continued storyline post-bye.
What about chunk runs of 10-plus yards?
Not unhealthy total, the Steelers tying for ninth within the NFL with 22 runs of 10 or extra yards allowed. Pittsburgh did enable 4 final sport, its second most of 2024 to the 5 allowed within the Week 4 poor run protection outing towards Indianapolis.
Some issues have waned as of late. However the deep dive into the Pittsburgh Steelers’ run protection revealed a unit that’s prime 10 in just about each facet I dove into this season. The one exception was second-down success price (18th). Hopefully that improves and that the Steelers’ run protection stays a power towards a tricky remaining schedule that features a number of robust dashing groups.
