Four Downs: No matter the statistic, Steelers not good offensively

1. Don’t take offense

Speaking two weeks ago, Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin termed the room for growth the Pittsburgh Steelers had as “substantial.” Indeed — measured by numerous method, the Steelers are lacking offensively.

The Steelers rank 28th in total offense (276.5 yards per game), 21st in scoring offense (20.5 points per game), 25th in yards per play (5.1), 29th in first downs (16.5 per game), 28th in passing (200 yards per game), 28th in yards per pass attempt (6.5), 26th in rushing (76.5 yards per game), 27th in yards per carry (3.5), 28th in yards per drive (27.23) and 28th in footballoutsiders.com’s drive success rate (65.6% of series have resulted in a first down or touchdown.).

They also have no carries of more than 23 yards and just 14 receptions of at least 20 yards (the latter ranks 30th in the NFL).

Kevin Gorman's Take 5: Steelers in need of 'substantial' growth on offense

(Via TribLive) https://t.co/m04Lqffb7h

— Kevin Gorman (@KGorman_Trib) October 20, 2019

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2. Ratings up/down

Pro Football Focus’ more subjective ratings reflect the Steelers’ offensive mediocrity. According to the analytical service, the Steelers rank 29th overall offensively. Their passers rate 30th, their receivers last, their runners 24th and their run blocking 20th.

At least the pass blocking is rated No. 4 in the league. And defensively, the reports are much better: fifth on defense, second-best against the run, the best pass rush, 10th-best tackling and 16th in pass coverage.

NFL offense rankings through Week 6

Since Ben Roethlisberger went down in Week 2, 68.6% of the Steelers’ pass yards have come after the catch. That’s the highest by over 7.2%. 58 pass attempts behind the LOS are the most in the league by seven. https://t.co/9wqw2i2Wx8

— PFF PIT Steelers (@PFF_Steelers) October 17, 2019

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3. Duck’s hunt

PFF calculates what it believes is a better way than completion percentage for calculating a quarterback’s accuracy. They call it adjusted completion percentage, and it accounts for dropped passes, balls thrown away, spiked balls, batted passes and passes when the quarterback gets hit while throwing.

And of all quarterbacks who have started this season, Devlin Hodges has the best adjusted completion percentage.

Statistically, Hodges went 22 for 29 over six quarters against the Baltimore Ravens and Los Angeles Chargers this month. But with one drop and two throwaways factored in, Hodges passing looks like this: 23 of 27 (85.2%).

Of course, it’s a small sample size, and seasonlong starters Derek Carr, Kirk Cousins and Dak Prescott aren’t far behind. Also, the gameplan called for an abundance of screens and dump-offs. Still, Hodges is showing he’s not out of place at the NFL level.

"He’s a downhill runner, he’s physical, he’s got a lot of passion. I love being around him, he wants to be good. It means a lot to him, and he will just continue to get better."#Steelershttps://t.co/bQArnlC290

— Tribune-ReviewSports (@TribSports) October 18, 2019

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4. Proving it wrong

The narrative surrounding Benny Snell as he entered the NFL was he was a tough runner but he lacked speed or elusiveness to be a big-play threat.

So far, that’s been proven wrong.

The book is far from closed on Snell and whether he has a future as featured NFL running back. But in limited action so far, Snell has shown he can break a big play. Two of Snell’s 23 regular-season carries have been for 20 or more yards — only 18 running backs in the league have more.

To put that number into perspective, consider during his most recent season with the Steelers, Le’Veon Bell managed just three carries of 20 or more yards. Bell had 321 attempts — 14 times more carries than Snell this season (23).

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