Checking out the one sack the Pittsburgh Steelers allowed in Sunday’s Week 16 win over the Indianapolis Colts.
1. 2nd and 8, 1:12 1st. 11 personnel. Six block vs five rush
Welp, the Steelers are never going to run playaction again. This sack comes on playaction out of pistol, a really well-timed blitz for a Colts’ defense who rarely brings additional pressure. Safety Khari Willis blows through the gap between RT Chukwuma Okorafor and TE Vance McDonald, sacking Ben Roethilsberger right as he’s turning to see the defense.
That’s one of the downsides of playaction and one reason why Roethlisberger has likely been resistant to the idea. Turning your back to the defense gives you no chance to get away if the pressure’s immediate.
For our purposes, the key question is – who’s to blame here?
Most people will turn to RT Chukwuma Okorafor. Willis ran through his gap and Okorafor didn’t block anyone. But it’s hard to fault him here. His job is to sell the run with the double-team block alongside RG David DeCastro. He’s sliding away from where the pressure is. So the design doesn’t really give him the opportunity to pick Willis up. With Snell part of the playaction, it’s hard for him to get to the blitzing safety, too. When the idea is to sell run, it’s hard to pick up the blitz. In theory, Okorafor could’ve abandoned his assignment but that’s asking a lot and he probably doesn’t have a chance to get a piece of Willis even if he tried.
So as much as I’m loathe to just put this on a good defensive scheme, I have to tip my hat to the Colts here. This is just bad timing to run playaction against this safety blitz. Nice job by Indy.
Blame: Defensive Scheme
Sack Breakdown (Game)
Defensive Scheme: 1
Sack Breakdown (Season)
Matt Feiler: 2.5
Chukwuma Okorafor: 2
Defensive Scheme: 2
Ben Roethlisberger: 1.5
Zach Banner: 1
Alejandro Villanueva: 1
Maurkice Pouncey: 0.5
Eric Ebron: 0.5
James Conner: 0.5
Kevin Dotson: 0.5
Jaylen Samuels: 0.5
Penalty Breakdown (Game)
None
Penalty Breakdown (Season)
Chukwuma Okorafor: 5
JC Hassenauer: 3
Kevin Dotson: 2
Alejandro Villanueva: 2
Matt Feiler: 2
David DeCastro: 2
Maurkice Pouncey: 1
