With the 2024 common season within the books, I needed to offer a favourite stat at Steelers Depot: Adjusted Internet Yards Per Move Try (ANY/A). ANY/A is Passing yards – Sack Yards + (20 * Passing TD) – (45 * Interceptions)) / (Passes Tried + Occasions Sacked). In case you’re new to the stat, it has predicted all however one Tremendous Bowl Winner since 2000.
For in depth takeaways earlier this season, take a look at these ANY/A articles:
2024 ANY/A Stats Week 1
2024 ANY/A Stats Week 4
2024 ANY/A Stats Week 7
2024 ANY/A Stats Week 10
2024 ANY/A Stats Week 13
2024 ANY/A Stats Week 16
Listed below are previous seasons as properly:
2023 ANY/A Common Season Rankings
2022 ANY/A Common Season Rankings
2021 ANY/A Common Season Rankings
Here’s a visible of offenses and defenses ANY/A for the 2024 common season (playoff groups = darker logos):
This visible permits us to see each playoff groups strengths and weaknesses heading into the postseason alongside the remainder of the NFL. All 14 playoff groups have an above the imply quantity on both facet of the ball.
The craziest factor that jumps out to me is the Baltimore Ravens 9.3 OANY/A, over a full level stronger than some other offense this season, with the Detroit Lions second-best mark coming in at 8.1. That’s the scary process the Pittsburgh Steelers face on Saturday evening, a frightening problem to start the postseason.
For extra perspective, the perfect offense in 2023 had been the San Francisco 49ers (8.6), 7.9 Kansas Metropolis Chiefs in 2022, and the Inexperienced Bay Packers at 7.6 in 2021. In actual fact, Baltimore’s 9.3 OANY/A is the third-best mark since 2000 and certain longer. The one groups that had been higher had been the 2004 Indianapolis Colts led by QB Peyton Manning (9.6), and 2011 Packers with Aaron Rodgers (9.4).
This provides extra context to how a lot better Baltimore’s passing assault has turn out to be. Pittsburgh discovered the onerous approach within the final matchup, a Week 16 34-17 defeat. That flipped the script to nearly all of low scoring slugfests between the rivals over time, and the way it transpired the primary time this season, when the Steelers etched the 18-16 victory.
Appears perpetually in the past, previous to the four-game shedding streak they’re aiming to finish, when Pittsburgh was taking part in nice complimentary soccer. They’re preaching short-term reminiscence, with no time to dwell on these painful losses in preparation for the playoffs, and Baltimore. You higher be taught from that Week 16 throttling although, or the embarrassment will proceed with one other embarrassing early playoff exit and disappointing finish to the 2024-25 season.
Talking of embarrassment, one other staff that walloped the Steelers led the league on the defensive facet, the Philadelphia Eagles, who gained 27-13 in Week 15 which began Pittsburgh’s horrible shedding skid. The Eagles posted a 4.8 DANY/A this 12 months, with the second place Minnesota Vikings coming in at 5.1. So, not the large hole we noticed in OANY/A, and several other groups posting higher marks since 2000.
This included a number of Tremendous Bowl profitable groups in that span, together with each Championship Steelers squads, in a special period than right this moment’s move glad league. Pittsburgh’s 2009 protection had a 3.2 DANY/A, second-best amongst any Tremendous Bowl winner since 2000, solely to the 2003 Tampa Bay Buccaneers elite 2.3 DANY/A. Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin was a defensive backs coach on the time for that excellent unit.
Sadly, Pittsburgh’s 2024 numbers are stale compared to all of the beforehand talked about squads. On the season, the Steelers completed with a 6.2 OANY/A that tied for Thirteenth, and 5.7 DANY/A that landed seventh. Not horrible, in comparison with a 5.6 OANY/A (Twenty first) and 5.8 DANY/A (T-Thirteenth) in 2023, and 5.0 OANY/A (twenty seventh) and 5.9 DANY/A (T-Fifteenth) in 2022.
So, enhancements throughout the board the previous few years, notably on offense is encouraging.
However taking a look at 2024’s weekly offensive outcomes paint a special image not too long ago:
We are able to clearly see that OANY/A has straight correlated to the Steelers shedding streak, with four-straight video games beneath the best 6.5 quantity (blue line). Since QB Russell Wilson took over in Week 7, that occurred simply two different occasions, in two video games post-bye. In any other case, he had encouraging passing outings that led to a 4-1 document in 5 above the road video games, versus 2-4 when below-average.
Most of these had been in opposition to robust competitors, in comparison with a way more favorable schedule when he carried out properly, including context to when issues felt nice and the current ache Pittsburgh is enduring. It actually gained’t get any simpler in January soccer. Hopefully we lastly see Wilson step up in opposition to harder competitors, beginning with the Ravens who stored him beneath the road in each outings this season.
If not, it might be one more one-and-done playoff expertise, extending the Steelers drought of not profitable a postseason sport since 2016. Hopefully it’s a hungry and targeted group that is able to soar after two notably dangerous passing and offensive outings to finish the 12 months. Scoring not more than 17 factors amid their shedding streak would even be aided of their objectives of constructing noise within the match.
Listed below are the weekly numbers:
Week 1 vs. ATL (Justin Fields): 5.32
Week 2 vs. DEN: 5.91
Week 3 vs. LAC: 6.09
Week 4 vs. IND: 7.95
Week 5 vs. DAL: 5.17
Week 6 vs. LV: 4.07
Week 7 vs. NYJ (Russell Wilson): 10.0
Week 8 vs. NYG: 8.72
Week 9: BYE
Week 10 vs. WAS: 6.03
Week 11 vs. BAL: 3.4
Week 12 vs. CLE: 8.38
Week 13 vs. CIN: 10.63
Week 14 vs. CLE: 6.93
Week 15 vs. PHI: 5.29
Week 16 vs. BAL: 5.36
Week 17 vs. KC: 2.79
Week 18 vs. CIN: 3.97
Listed below are defenses weekly outcomes:
Immediately we see the Pittsburgh Steelers’ protection was good for big parts of the season. However they fell off the cliff when within the first three video games of the shedding streak in opposition to Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Kansas Metropolis. Being at or beneath six is the best mark for postseason success. These video games had been a far cry from it, all numbers bigger than eight.
Seeing the Ravens as considered one of these groups, imposing their will on Pittsburgh’s protection who allowed an 8.88 ANY/A within the final Week 16 sport, is in fact regarding. The next KC matchup was even worse, with QB Patrick Mahomes and firm posting a ten.0 ANY/A. Contemplating many have these two groups as potential Tremendous Bowl winners, not the outcomes you need to see from Pittsburgh’s protection, who gasoline the groups success (or failure) sometimes.
The Steelers protection encouragingly held their weight in opposition to the hovering Cincinnati Bengals passing offense within the 19-17 finale, although a 4.42 DANY/A wasn’t sufficient to safe victory, sadly. Optimistically, Pittsburgh’s protection can have an identical outing of their Tremendous Wildcard sport in opposition to Baltimore, who’ve been on one other stage.
Pittsburgh does have an encouraging monitor document in opposition to them, together with a greater 5.14 DANY/A than the newer Week 16 8.88 debacle. Hopefully that extra profitable historical past repeats itself on protection, whereas the offense actually must step it up after being a persistently poor unit the final 4 losses.
Listed below are the weekly numbers:
Week 1 vs. ATL: 2.39
Week 2 vs. DEN: 3.81
Week 3 vs. LAC: 6.45
Week 4 vs. IND: 6.93
Week 5 vs. DAL: 6.5
Week 6 vs. LV: 4.71
Week 7 vs. NYJ: 4.98
Week 8 vs. NYG: 4.57
Week 9: BYE
Week 10 vs. WAS: 4.92
Week 11 vs. BAL: 5.14
Week 12 vs. CLE: 6.21
Week 13 vs. CIN: 7.07
Week 14 vs. CLE: 3.32
Week 15 vs. PHI: 8.86
Week 16 vs. BAL: 8.88
Week 17 vs. KC: 10.0
Week 18 vs. CIN: 4.42
To shut, right here’s a desk of the 2024 ANY/A outcomes, sorted by differential with the objective of displaying probably the most balanced groups. Group names highlighted in inexperienced are playoff groups:
Right here we see that every one 14 playoff groups rank within the prime half of the league in ANY/A differential, but once more hammering residence the significance of the stat. Pleasant reminder, just one Tremendous Bowl winner since 2000 has had a destructive differential. Due to their stellar offensive quantity, Baltimore has the bragging rights of the strongest 3.2 differential, a full level above Detroit at 2.2.
Compared, Pittsburgh has a 0.5 ANY/A differential, rating twelfth within the NFL in 2024. Largely, that’s fairly good general in comparison with current seasons: 2023 (-0.2, 18th), 2022 (-0.9, T-Twenty third), 2021 (-0.4, T-Twenty first). Previous to their four-game shedding streak to finish the 2024 season, Pittsburgh was a top-ten unit as properly. It’s time to get again to that, and show they will carry out that approach in opposition to the NFLs greatest groups, which they had been unable to do to finish the 12 months.
Knock on wooden that’s the case in opposition to Baltimore, and hopefully past.
