The Pittsburgh Steelers signed veteran inside linebacker Jon Bostic to a two-year free agent contract in March and since then there’s been quite a bit of discussion about his coverage ability and how he’ll ultimately be used on defense in 2018. In order to give you a better idea as to how Bostic is in coverage, Alex Kozora and I have attempted to contextualize every play he was targeted in coverage during the 2017 regular season with the Indianapolis Colts.
As a starting point for this exercise, we used the target data that Pro Football Focus compiled for Bostic last season with the Colts. That data states that Bostic was targeted 51 times in total and that he allowed 41 completions for 412 yards and 3 touchdowns.
As part of this contextualization exercise, we divided the targets up into two separate posts and the first one focused on the first 25 times Bostic was targeted in pass coverage during the 2017 season and through the first five games. In this post, we focus on the final 26 times that Bostic was allegedly targeted during the 2017 regular season in games 6 through 15. On those 26 targets, Bostic was charged by PFF with allowing 21 completions for 153 yards and 1 touchdown.
All 26 of those plays are charted for you in the table below the video of the plays. The table also includes a contextualization of each play in addition to the distance each pass was thrown in relation to the original line of scrimmage as well as yards after the catch that were gained.
Let the record show that 15 of these plays are deemed successful ones based on down and distance. Additionally, these 26 targets include a running back being thrown to 10 times, a tight end being thrown to 10 times and a wide receiver being thrown to 6 times. On two of these completed passes that Bostic was charged with allowing, the football was caught behind the original line of scrimmage.
| OPP | WK | QRT | TIME | DWN | DIST | LOS | PLAY BY PLAY | RES | YDS | PDIST | YAC | SUCC | CONTEXTUALIZATION |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TEN | 6 | 2 | 9:25 | 3 | 2 | TEN 14 | M.Mariota pass SR to D.Murray pushed ob at TEN 25 for 11 yards (D.Butler). | C | 11 | 1 | 10 | Y | Doesn’t take back out of backfield, potential miscommunication passing off crossers |
| TEN | 6 | 3 | 11:43 | 1 | 10 | IND 48 | M.Mariota pass SL to D.Murray pushed ob at IND 35 for 13 yards (J.Bostic). | C | 13 | 4 | 9 | Y | Zone hook defender, checkdown to RB, allows YAC (slips) |
| TEN | 6 | 3 | :56 | 2 | 15 | TEN 43 | (SG) M.Mariota pass SM to J.Smith to IND 47 for 10 yards (J.Bostic) | C | 10 | 9 | 1 | Y | Zone defender, TE sits down on curl, Bostic immediately makes tackle |
| TEN | 6 | 4 | 13:31 | 2 | 11 | IND 43 | (SG) M.Mariota pass SM to D.Walker to IND 44 for -1 yards (J.Simon). | C | -1 | -3 | 2 | N | Shovel pass, Bostic helps on tackle |
| JAC | 7 | 1 | 9:38 | 2 | 1 | IND 1 | C.Reed reported in as eligible. B.Bortles pass incomplete SL to M.Lewis | C | 0 | 0 | 0 | N | Playaction, Bostic late with pass key, corner route to TE overthrown and incomplete |
| CIN | 8 | 2 | 7:32 | 2 | 8 | CIN 11 | (SG) A.Dalton pass incomplete SL to T.Kroft. | C | 0 | 0 | 0 | N | Man coverage on Y, plays to inside hip and takes crossing route away initially, scramble drill, TE gets separation, pass INC |
| CIN | 8 | 3 | 2:10 | 1 | 10 | CIN 25 | (SG) A.Dalton pass SR to A.Green pushed ob at CIN 30 for 5 yards (T.Green). | C | 5 | -4 | 9 | Y | Emory/Henry formation, screen to WR |
| CIN | 8 | 3 | 1:54 | 2 | 5 | CIN 30 | A.Dalton pass SM to T.Kroft to CIN 29 for -1 yards (J.Bostic, A.Morrison) | C | -1 | -2 | 1 | N | Playaction, dump off to TE, Bostic misses tackle |
| CIN | 8 | 3 | 1:09 | 3 | 6 | CIN 29 | (SG) A.Dalton pass SL to J.Mixon to CIN 37 for 8 yards (D.Butler). | C | 8 | -5 | 13 | Y | Designed flare to RB in left flat, recovers fumble |
| CIN | 8 | 4 | 5:19 | 1 | 10 | CIN 29 | A.Dalton pass SL to T.Kroft to CIN 39 for 10 yards (P.Desir). | C | 10 | -1 | 11 | Y | Playaction, TE leaks out in flat, Bostic late to react |
| HOU | 9 | 1 | 1:23 | 1 | 10 | IND 31 | (SG) T.Savage pass incomplete DR to B.Ellington. | INC | 0 | 0 | 0 | N | Reads pass key well, walls off #2 on over route, forces throw out of bounds, incomplete |
| HOU | 9 | 2 | 9:48 | 2 | 12 | HST 4 | (SG) T.Savage pass incomplete DM to D.Hopkins (J.Bostic). | INC | 0 | 0 | 0 | N | Gets depth in zone coverage, reads QB, breaks up pass down seam |
| HOU | 9 | 3 | 6:02 | 2 | 8 | HST 46 | (NH, Shotgun) T.Savage pass incomplete SM to D.Foreman (J.Bostic). | INC | 0 | 0 | 0 | N | RB runs angle route, makes catch but Bostic doesn’t allow YAC |
| HOU | 9 | 4 | 1:21 | 1 | 10 | IND 37 | (SG) T.Savage pass SR to S.Anderson to IND 23 for 14 yards (J.Bostic). | C | 14 | 11 | 3 | Y | Misses reroute on Y, allows catch for 15 yard gain |
| PIT | 10 | 1 | 15:00 | 1 | 10 | PIT 25 | (SG) B.Roethlisberger pass SL to A.Brown pushed ob at PIT 30 for 5 yards (J.Bostic). | C | 5 | -2 | 7 | Y | One step flare to WR, Bostic chases him out of bounds |
| PIT | 10 | 3 | 10:52 | 1 | 10 | IND 22 | (SG) B.Roethlisberger pass SR to L.Bell to IND 14 for 8 yards (J.Bostic). | C | 8 | -2 | 10 | Y | Flare to RB, Bostic makes tackle |
| PIT | 10 | 4 | 9:20 | 3 | 12 | PIT 45 | (SG) B.Roethlisberger pass SR to J.Smith-Schuster to IND 35 for 20 yards (R.Melvin). | C | 20 | 15 | 5 | Y | Zone LB, doesn’t get enough width, WR finds soft spot in coverage for good gain |
| TEN | 12 | 3 | 1:56 | 1 | 2 | IND 2 | M.Mariota pass SL to D.Walker for 2 yards, TOUCHDOWN. | C | 2 | 2 | 0 | Y | Playaction, reads keys but poor jam on TE, allows TD on corner route |
| TEN | 12 | 4 | 11:24 | 1 | 10 | TEN 23 | M.Mariota pass SM to D.Henry pushed ob at TEN 33 for 10 yards (A.Morrison). | C | 10 | 2 | 8 | Y | Checkdown to RB, Bostic not around play, isn’t a “catch allowed” |
| JAC | 13 | 1 | 2:25 | 1 | 10 | IND 47 | B.Bortles pass incomplete SM to M.Lewis. | INC | 0 | 0 | 0 | N | Tight coverage on Y quick out, forces bad throw |
| JAC | 13 | 2 | 3:01 | 3 | 8 | IND 24 | (SG) B.Bortles pass SL to T.Yeldon to IND 8 for 16 yards (N.Hairston; Q.Wilson). | C | 16 | -4 | 20 | Y | Picked by teammate, flare to RB, good gain |
| JAC | 13 | 3 | 11:44 | 3 | 6 | IND 20 | (SG) B.Bortles pass SL to L.Fournette to IND 9 for 11 yards (J.Bostic). | C | 11 | 8 | 3 | Y | Flexed out vs RB, gives cushion, complete on slant, Bostic makes tackle |
| JAC | 13 | 3 | 5:29 | 2 | 12 | JAX 24 | (SG) B.Bortles pass SL to L.Fournette pushed ob at JAX 28 for 4 yards (Q.Wilson). | C | 4 | -5 | 9 | N | Flare to RB for short gain, teammate makes tackle |
| JAC | 13 | 4 | 8:18 | 3 | 11 | JAX 41 | (SG) B.Bortles pass SL to T.Yeldon to 50 for 9 yards (N.Hairston; J.Bostic). | C | 9 | -4 | 13 | N | Screen, Bostic works through trash to make tackle |
| BUF | 14 | 3 | 11:48 | 3 | 8 | BUF 10 | N.Peterman pass SL to C.Clay to BUF 20 for 10 yards (M.Farley). | C | 10 | 2 | 8 | Y | Playaction to open TE in flat |
| DEN | 15 | 2 | 1:30 | 2 | 9 | IND 18 | (NH, Shotgun) B.Osweiler pass incomplete SL to V.Green. | INC | 0 | 0 | 0 | N | Flare to RB, incomplete, Bostic didn’t contest throw |
