The Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Baltimore Ravens last Saturday in Week 18, and as if the 17-10 final score wasn’t enough, the advanced analytics certainly prove the Steelers were worthy of victory. Following the game Zebra Technologies, who officially works with the NFL to provide all their advanced analytics and Next Generation (Gen) Stats, provided some detailed statistics for the Steelers offense and defense after the game.

So what did the advanced analytics show which might not have been obvious for the casual observer? What better place to start than with the quarterback position…

Mason Rudolph

“In a must win Week 18 game, Mason Rudolph delivered. The Steelers offensive game plan was predicated on short, quick throws that relied on receivers picking up YAC. Rudolph’s avg. time to throw was 2.62 seconds (10th lowest) & his avg. intended air yards mark was 2.9 – lowest (0.7 avg. completed air yards, 2nd lowest). He posted a +12.6% CPOE (4th highest) but also had the highest expected completion percentage of the week (77.4%).”

Rudolph might have thrown the ball down the field at a ridiculous clip, but the weather conditions certainly had something to do with that. Nonetheless, Rudolph made the throws necessary, finishing 18/20 on the day.

Najee Harris

“Najee Harris totaled 112 rushing yards and a TD on 26 carries (+14 RYOE) against the Ravens, his 3rd straight game generating positive RYOE. Harris saw most of his production come on inside runs, recording 100 yards and a TD on 19 such carries. He managed these numbers while facing stacked boxes on 53.85% of his carries, tied 2nd most for the week.”

Najee Harris had one of his best games as a professional on Saturday vs. the Ravens defense. When the Steelers were watching Jaylen Warren putting the ball on the turf, it was Harris who took the reigns and made the necessary plays.

Diontae Johnson

“Evidence of the Steelers’ reliance on quick, short passes came from Diontae Johnson in Week 18. He commanded a 91.06% share of the Steelers’ air yards (1st) while only averaging 10.7 targeted air yards on 5 total targets. He caught 4 of those, going for 89 yards and a TD. His avg. YACOE of 9.4 yards was highest of the week.”

Again, these advanced statistics don’t show the weather conditions and how difficult it had to be for both offenses to move the ball down the field. Nonetheless, Johnson’s big play, the only big play of the game, was enough to turn the tide in the Steelers’ favor.

Season Analytics

Several Steelers were highlighted for different reasons as it pertains to the season-long analytics which were collected:

Kenny Pickett

Aggressiveness: Lowest: Patrick Mahomes (9.7%), Highest: Kenny Pickett (20.1%)

George Pickens

Avg. cushion: Lowest: George Pickens (5.1 yards), Highest: Zay Flowers (7.7 yards)

Pat Freiermuth

Avg. cushion: Lowest: Juwan Johnson (5.0 yards), Highest: Pat Freiermuth (7.0 yards)

Dave Schofield talks about these stats, and plenty more, in the latest Stat Geek podcast. You can hear it in the player below. Be sure to stay tuned to SCN for the latest news and notes surrounding the Steelers as they prepare for the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Wild Card Round.