CHI
SEAPittsburgh win 27‑6: the offence moved the ball, but red-zone trips came up empty
Week 8, vs Cleveland. Explosive-play rate ranked 4th of 28 this week; red-zone TD rate ranked 17th. Here's what the data says happened.
The Steelers beat Cleveland 27-6 in week 8. As a fan I'd like to tell you it was all one thing. The numbers say it wasn't, so here's the game broken down the same way we'd break down anyone else's: protection, who got open, the calls, the drives, and the defence.
Protection
PFR's pressure charting for week 8 hasn't landed yet, so this section leans on play-by-play: 2 of 25 dropbacks ended in a hit or a sack.
A.Rodgers: EPA per dropback, clean vs hit or sacked (week 8)
Who got open, and where the ball went
| Player | Tgt | Sep (yd) | Catch % | Yds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DK Metcalf | 6 | 2.4 | 17% | 4 |
| Darnell Washington | 5 | 2.7 | 60% | 94 |
| Germie Bernard | 5 | 5.0 | 100% | 30 |
Targets vs separation (Next Gen Stats, week 8; league average separation 3.2 yd)
The calls and the drives
In neutral situations (early downs, within a score, first three quarters) Pittsburgh threw on 50% of plays (league 50%). Passes were worth -0.15 EPA and runs +0.34. 45% of third downs were 7+ yards to go (league 40%) — the tell that first and second down kept going backwards.
11 drives, 5 trips inside the 20, 60% of them finished with a touchdown (league 61%). Drive endings: 4 punts, 3 touchdowns, 2 field goals, 1 missed field goal.
The defence
Cleveland managed -0.28 EPA per play against us (5th of 28 defences this week), converted 31% of third downs, and we got 8 sacks and 2 takeaways. Season to date the offence ranks 21st and the defence 6th of 32 by EPA per play.
Who won the matchups
DK Metcalf against Cleveland: Cleveland won it. Metcalf held to 4 yards on 6 targets, against his usual 51.
T.J. Watt against Cleveland: Watt won it. 2 sacks and 1 other QB hit, against his usual 1.4 sacks and hits a game.
Harold Fannin Jr. against Pittsburgh: Fannin won it. Fannin won it deep: 62 of his 154 yards came on throws of 20+ yards.
Red-zone TD rate: 60% this week, 17th of 28 (league 61%). Cincinnati rank 5th of 32 in red-zone TD rate allowed so far (50%, league 63%). Finish drives. Field goals from inside the 20 are points left on the table. Third-down conversion: 36% this week, 15th of 28 (league 37%). Cincinnati rank 29th of 32 in third-down conversion allowed so far (47%, league 40%). Win first and second down. Third-and-long is where this offence has been losing drives.
Not available when this was drafted: PFR pressure charting for week 8; FTN charting (reads, play action) for week 8. Those sections use play-by-play instead.
Sources: nflverse play-by-play; PFR advanced passing; Next Gen Stats; FTN charting. Every number here comes straight from our pipeline.