The 2024 NFL season has taken off, so it’s time to get an preliminary lay of the land when it comes to a favourite stat right here on Steelers Depot: Adjusted Web Yards per Cross Try (ANY/A), which is (Passing Yards – Sack Yards + (20 * Passing TD) – (45 * Interceptions)) / (Passes Tried + Occasions Sacked). Taking the offensive (OANY/A) and defensive (DANY/A) outcomes, we get a differential.
To assessment the significance of the stat, just one Tremendous Bowl Winner since 2000 has had a unfavorable differential, and no workforce has had a DANY/A above six. It’s only one week, nevertheless it’s all the time enjoyable to see how groups come out of the gates and monitor by the season. Right here’s a hyperlink to the total 2023 common season ANY/A rankings.
Now for week one of many 2024 season:
Straight away, we see that the Pittsburgh Steelers protection was one of many prime items in Week One, encouragingly. They posted a incredible 2.4 DANY/A, which ranked seventh-best. To assessment, a full-season quantity under six factors is the historic mark of a championship-level protection.
Issues began out very shiny within the Metal Metropolis. That would be the recipe for this workforce to succeed in its postseason objectives, and I can’t wait to see the way it transpires transferring ahead.
Extra particularly, Pittsburgh held Atlanta to 137 passing yards (T-seventh) on 26 cross makes an attempt (T-tenth least), two sacks (T-Thirteenth) and 18 sack yards (twelfth), one landing (T-tenth), and two interceptions (T-first). Every ranked within the prime half of the league, significantly interceptions, which was nice to see.
If not for officiating robbing Pittsburgh (specifically star EDGE T.J. Watt), they might have been within the prime ten throughout the board. That is thrilling information, Steelers followers, and I hope I’m sharing related issues because the season progresses.
A number of different defenses had been additionally robust within the opener. Groups that had an excellent higher DANY/A than Pittsburgh had been Seattle (1.0), Chicago (1.0), New Orleans (1.3), Dallas (1.3), Minnesota (1.6), and Tennessee (2.1).
Pittsburgh will host Dallas at Acrisure Stadium in Week 5, so their traits will probably be fascinating to watch. The remainder of that group isn’t on the Steelers’ robust 2024 schedule.
Shifting to offenses, Pittsburgh was quite conservative out of the gates, coping with a late change at QB from Russell Wilson (calf) to Justin Fields. The workforce acknowledged the playbook was unchanged, nevertheless it was very a lot a well-recognized Steelers method of caring for the soccer, not asking an excessive amount of from the QB whereas leaning on the protection and the operating sport.
Pittsburgh’s offense was slightly below the imply with a 5.3 OANY/A, rating twentieth. This included 133 passing yards (twenty eighth) on 23 cross makes an attempt (T-Twenty ninth), two sacks (T-eighth) and 23 sack yards (T-Twenty fourth), no touchdowns (T-Twenty fourth) or interceptions (T-Seventeenth).
Taking sacks has been a problem in Fields and Wilson’s previous, and whereas there have been two within the opener, that ranked excessive league-wide. Hoping for that to proceed. In any other case, the Steelers had been within the backside half of the league, sadly.
The flipside of that sack outcome was the yardage misplaced, transferring all the way in which right down to Twenty fourth. Fields has elusive capability, however operating backward beneath duress is hopefully not a reoccurring theme. Significantly low within the ranks had been makes an attempt and yards, which is able to doubtless be related if issues go in keeping with Pittsburgh’s superb script of operating the ball.
Optimistically, the playbook will open up extra transferring ahead, which might be the perfect complement to the Steelers’ run-first id. We noticed refreshing sprinkles of OC Arthur Smith’s creativity, and we are able to’t wait to see extra, hopefully very quickly.
NFL offenses who fared finest had been Tampa Bay (11.6), Buffalo (10.5), New Orleans (10.4), Indianapolis (9.2), Kansas Metropolis (8.5), Miami (8.5), and Minnesota (7.8). Some anticipated groups, such because the back-to-back champions (Chiefs), whereas the Payments, Saints, and Vikings had been the one groups comfortably above the imply on each side of the ball.
Pittsburgh will face Kansas Metropolis (Week 17) and the Colts in Week 4. In fact, that is only a one-game pattern dimension, and issues will certainly change with extra video games. However I can’t wait to see how issues develop.
Right here’s a desk view of the information to shut, rating the groups by ANY/A differential together with the sport final result:
The Steelers ranked solidly with a seventh-best 2.9 differential, because of their strong day on protection. If this will proceed, in comparison with having a unfavorable quantity a lot of final season, a extra profitable 2024 is hopefully in retailer for the Black and Gold.
Sure, it’s only one sport, and plenty of groups come out shakier than in current seasons, resting a number of starters within the preseason. So, I’m not overreacting, however right here’s to hoping Pittsburgh can keep above the road in ANY/A differential, which might bode nicely for his or her aspirations this season.
Thanks for studying, and let me know your ideas within the feedback.