Three Key Steelers Stats For Re-Match With Browns

A devastating blow to the Browns season this week threatens their run at an AFC North crown. Without quarterback Deshaun Watson for the remainder of 2023, Cleveland hopes to press forward with rookie quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson captaining the offense and a dominant defense to set the tone each week.

First up on their quest to stay in the mix in the AFC playoff picture is a date with the vaunted Pittsburgh Steelers. Yet another intra-division matchup with playoff implications for both teams.

The Steelers have proven that despite some seriously glaring offensive deficiencies, they're never completely out of a game. This week's three key stats paint a pretty clear picture as to why that is.

1) Keep Running, Running

Much has been made about the Steelers being outgained in every game this season and somehow being 6-3. It is a remarkable stat without question, but one area where they've actually seen some marginal improvement of late is in their run game.

In its first seven games Pittsburgh accumulated 558 yards on the ground for an average of 78.7 yards per game. In the last two games it rushed for 371 yards for an average of 185.5 per game. That's right, in just the last two weeks the Steelers have racked up around two thirds of their rushing yards from the previous seven.

To take it a step further, top back Najee Harris was averaging 3.9 yards per carry over the first seven games of the season. That number jumped to 4.7 yards per carry during that same two game stretch. Now, the emergence of Jaylen Warren has helped things, in fact, his presence gives the Steelers backfield an impressive one-two punch that Cleveland didn't necessarily see back in Week 2.

Pittsburgh's identity has always been running the football and playing tough defense and both those things are clicking right now.

2) It's About How You Finish

Speaking of a formula, the Steelers have mastered the old football cliché "find a way to win." Look no further than the discrepancy between the team's first half scoring versus the second half scoring.

Let's start in the first quarter where Pittsburgh is being outscored sizeably 53-28. When you expand that to the entirety of first halves, opponents have outscored Pittsburgh 111-72. When things flip to the second half though, the Steelers are now outscoring opponents by a margin of 84-71, but the big differential comes in the fourth quarter specifically where they've outscored teams by 14 points, 45-31.

This team is remarkable really. No matter how overmatched they may seem in any game they just find a way to keep it close, drag the other team into the gutter and come out with a win. It's fascinating. Winning the fourth quarter may be cliché but it's part of the reason Pittsburgh is 6-3. For what it's worth, Cleveland has been very clutch in their own right down the stretch of games, with a 57-45, fourth-quarter scoring margin in their favor.

3) More Like Stealers

Okay the header is corny, but another reason why Pittsburgh is 6-3 despite their offensive inefficiencies is that they're the NFL's top team when it comes to taking the ball away. The Steelers are tied for sixth in interceptions with 10, second in fumble recoveries with eight, which brings us to a whopping 18 total turnovers (tied for first).

Meanwhile, their offense may have its issues but one thing they have done well is protect the football with just eight total turnovers so far this season (second least in the NFL). For those keeping score at home, that puts the Steelers turnover differential at +10, tied with the Bengals for best in the league.

It's no wonder this team is still alive in the AFC North and they come to Cleveland to face a team that has turned the ball over a league worst 19 times. That is going to have to change if the Browns have any hope of beating the Steelers this weekend.