Welcome to your weekly Pittsburgh Steelers “stat pack,” five numbers you need to know to get ready for the team’s upcoming game. They could relate to the opponent, the Steelers themselves, and could involve an individual, unit, or something else. All to help you become the smartest fan for gameday.
3.06
According to NextGenStats, that’s the average time Cleveland Browns RB Jerome Ford spends behind the line of scrimmage. It’s the second-highest/longest figure of any qualifying running back, only ahead of Seattle’s Kenneth Walker. It’s hard to know what to make of the number, some of it’s likely due to the Browns’ zone/stretch runs that can take longer to develop but if Ford is behind the line for too long, the Steelers’ defense can fly in and create negative plays.
The goal of both defenses in this one is to take away the running game, put the opposing quarterback in third and long, and make him beat you.
0.99
Sticking with the run game, 0.99 is RB Jaylen Warren’s rushing yards over expected per attempt. That’s tied for the fourth-best mark in football. A mouthful, I know, but it essentially means Warren is maximizing his runs as well as nearly any running back in football. He’s come on strong the last two weeks and went his first 100-yard game last week against the Green Bay Packers. The Browns will test how far the Steelers’ running game has come along.
31.4 Percent
According to our defensive charting, that’s Pittsburgh’s blitz rate in their two games this season against rookie quarterbacks, Houston’s C.J. Stroud and Tennessee’s Will Levis. That’s a slightly lower blitz rate than they’ve had against non-rookie QBs. We’ll see how they approach Dorian Thompson-Robinson this weekend. Blitz him and try to create chaos or sit back and see if he can put together long drives or make a mistake along the way.
1,826 & 28
Speaking of which, those are the career college rushing yards and touchdowns for Thompson-Robinson while at UCLA. Strong numbers overall and a reminder his legs might be his best asset in this game. Young quarterbacks like him are more likely to take off and that could be an issue on third down if he finds an escape lane. Pittsburgh can’t let him rip off key conversions that way.
One
The number of total completions of 20-plus air yards between the Browns and Steelers in Week One. Kenny Pickett had zero while Deshaun Watson had one. While both offenses will focus on protecting the football and running the ball effectively, someone will look for and make a big play downfield. Whether it’s Pickett taking a 1v1 shot on the outside (remember, there was no Diontae Johnson in the first game) or a playaction heave from Thompson-Robinson, the most likely outcome is for a team to win with a chunk play as opposed to a lengthy drive.
