The Steelers were the best team in football for the first 11 games of the season. What happened down the stretch that led to the collapse in Pittsburgh?
2020 record: 12-4
- Division record: 4-3*
- Record against teams with winning records: 5-3*
*Playoffs included*
Team Ranks:
| Total Offense | 25th (5354 yards) |
| Passing Offense | 15th (4003 yards) |
| Rushing Offense | 32nd (1351 yards) |
| Total Defense | 3rd (4893 yards allowed) |
| Passing Defense | 3rd (3110 yards allowed) |
| Rushing Defense | 11th (1783 yards allowed) |
| PPG | 12th (26.0) |
| PPG Allowed | 3rd (19.5) |
| Offensive Line Ranks | |
| PFF | 17th |
| Football Outsiders (Adjusted run yards) | 32nd (3.78) |
| Football Outsiders (Adjusted sack rate) | 1st (2.7%) |
| 2020 Offense Play Selection |
| Pass – 64.2% (2nd in NFL) |
| Rush – 35.8% |
| PFF Top 5 Graded Players in 2020 |
| 1. TJ Watt EDGE (91.6) |
| 2. Cameron Heyward DE (89.5) |
| 3. Tyson Alualu DT (86.6) |
| 4. Minkah Fitzpatrick S (76.4) |
| 5. Stephon Tuitt DT (75.8) |
Leading Passer: Ben Roethlisberger
- 65.6 completion percentage
- 3,803 passing yards
- 33 passing touchdowns
Leading Rusher: James Connor
- 721 rushing yards
- 6 rushing touchdowns
- 4.3 YPC
Leading Receiver: JuJu Smith-Schuster
- 97 receptions
- 831 receiving yards
- 9 touchdowns
Defensive MVP: T.J. Watt
- 15 sacks
- 41 QB hits
- 7 passes defended
What doomed them in the playoffs?
Arguably the craziest start to a playoff game that we have seen in NFL history. In the first 6 possessions of this game, the Steelers had 4 turnovers, 2 punts and 58 total yards. This all snowballed into a 28-0 Cleveland lead in the 1st quarter.
Credit to the Steelers for battling back, because after the first quarter they outscored the Browns by a score of 37-20. Overcoming a 28 point deficit was just far too big of a mountain to climb for the Steelers.
Story of the season: Tale of two seasons
The Steelers raced off to a 11-0 start off a truly balanced effort. The defense was playing at an elite level, while offense had a three-headed monster at WR and an all time great QB. Things were going well in Pittsburgh. Too well.
Pittsburgh would go onto lose 5 of their final 6 games and had a -8 turnover differential in this period. Turnovers were a major problem, as the offense started coughing the ball up more while the defense was causing less than they were early on in the season.
Another major problem was the offense playing a one-dimensional style. The running game finished dead last in yards, which put more pressure on the passing attack to bail out the offense.
The talent and production was there in the first 11 games for the Steelers. But, down the stretch the Steelers struggled to generate the same magic that had them undefeated through November.
What did you think of the Steelers’ season in 2020? Let me know on Twitter @James_Costanz.
