One reason for the “herky-jerky” nature of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ offense, the phrase Mike McCarthy has used several times already, is poor third-down offense. Pittsburgh’s inability to sustain drives is preventing the offense from getting into any flow or rhythm. More obviously, it’s not moving the offense downfield and into position to score.
Most often, poor third-down offense is a byproduct of being in unmanageable situations. Better known as “third and long.” The more an offense is backed up, the harder it is to convert.
That’s not the case with Pittsburgh, however. Despite its poor first-down offense, the Steelers have generally been in manageable third-down situations. They’ve simply been bad at converting.
Below is a table with three key third down stats sorted from Pro Football Reference/Stathead. Yards To Go, Yards Gained, and Conversion Rate.
Through two weeks, the Steelers are ninth in yards to go. They’re managing just 6.6 yards per attempt. Yet they’re tied for last on yards gained on those plays, 2.0, and 31st in conversion rate. Only the Green Bay Packers are worse.
| Third Down Category | Steelers’ Offensive Stat (Rank) |
|---|---|
| Yards To Go | 6.6 (9th) |
| Yards Gained | 2.0 (Tied-Last) |
| Conversion Rate | 20.8% (31st) |
The teams similar to Pittsburgh in yards to go have much higher conversion rates. The Buffalo Bills are needing 6.5 yards to go and are converting 60 percent of the time. The New York Giants and New Orleans Saints are averaging 6.7 yards to go and converting half their chances. Pittsburgh is an outlier. In raw numbers, Pittsburgh is a mere 5-of-25 on third down, going 3-of-13 in the opener and 2-of-12 versus New England.
Put another way, the Baltimore Ravens have the NFL’s worst/longest third down yards needed. They sit at 10.1 per attempt. Yet sitting at 41.2 percent, they double Pittsburgh’s conversion rate. The data says Pittsburgh shouldn’t be this bad.
The reasons are varied. Protection has been an issue. Wide receivers haven’t created separation. Drops have proven costly. If DK Metcalf catches two passes that were clear drops over the first two weeks, the numbers look a little different.
But those mistakes can’t be dismissed. It’s those issues that are crushing this team, sending out the punt unit, and keeping points off the board. The Steelers’ third-down offense will naturally improve, it won’t stay this poor all season, but the Steelers will need to see a big step forward to find traction. Of all their many ugly offensive figures, this is among the worst.
