The Pittsburgh Steelers returned to the track on Sunday afternoon, winning the AFC Northern Championship by defeating the Indianapolis Colts. Similar to the attack that Steelers fans had seen in the previous four games, Steelers left the locker room as the team that won victory after victory to start the season.
After starting a new winning streak at the end of the season, here are some of the numbers that helped lead the Steelers to beat the Colts 28-24.
5
The Steelers were able to fire quarterback Philip Rivers 5 times during Sunday’s game. The Colts came into play with the second smallest number of bags delivered (16), behind only the Steelers (12). Yes, the Colts were losing their two initial tackles due to injury and COVID-19, but the Steelers took advantage of the situation and had the most sacks in a game since Week 5 against the Philadelphia Eagles. With the 5 sacks on Sunday, it marks the fourth consecutive season in which the Steelers reached the 50 sack level and makes the team within 4 sacks to tie the franchise record of 56 in 2017. TJ Watt added 2.0 sacks on Sunday to bring its total league leader to 15.0 in 2020.
+2
The Steelers played their part in the sales department on both sides of the ball on Sunday. Not only did the Steelers attack not turn around, the defense had two takeaways. The first takeaway prepared the attack to need only 3 yards for a touchdown in the first half, where the second takeaway stopped the Colts’ momentum in an attempt to take the lead in the fourth period. The Steelers almost had a third delivery in the fourth period to seal the victory, but it was canceled out by a penalty.
17
With less than 20 minutes remaining, the Pittsburgh Steelers were 17 points behind Colts. This recovery was the biggest that Steelers overcame under coach Mike Tomlin.
10:45 am
The Steelers took less than 11 minutes on the clock to clear a 17-point handicap and gain a four-point advantage by placing 21 points with three touchdowns in the second half. The touchdowns came on three consecutive drives and took place at 10:45 am playing time.
28
Not only did the Steelers attack have to do its part in Sunday’s recovery, but the defense stepped up after the Steelers failed to score in their second-half kick and turned the ball low on the Colts 2-yard line. In the next three moves, the Steelers defense yielded just 28 yards in total and only a first drop to attack the ball in the fourth period losing by three points.
242
It was a big difference between the first and second half for the Pittsburgh Steelers, especially Ben Roethlisberger. Passing exactly 100 yards in the first half, with more than 40 of those yards arriving in the last 10 seconds of time, Roethlisberger blew up 242 yards in the second half against the Colts. After completing 11 of 21 passes in the first half, Roethlisberger made 23 of 29 with 3 touchdown passes in the final 30 minutes.
28
In a repeated number, the Steelers scored 28 points against Colts on Sunday. It was a streak of four consecutive games in which the Steelers did not score 20 points.
8
One thing that was very curious when it came to the Indianapolis Colts was the decision to only hit the ball 8 times in the second half. In the comparison between the two halves, the Colts made 34 plays in the first half, in which they shot 20 times in 77 yards. In the second half, the Colts also made 34 moves, but only threw the ball 8 times in 50 yards. Thus, the Colts were even more efficient at hitting the ball in the second half, even though they chose to run less than half the time.
9
After none of the players were shot in the first half, wide receivers Chase Claypool and James Washington saw 9 passes on their way in the second half against the Colts. Claypool ended the game with 4 receptions on 6 targets in 54 yards, while Washington took 2 passes on 3 targets in 20 yards.
9
The most important number 9 this season was the 9th time the Steelers won AFC North since the divisions were realigned for the 2002 season. The Steelers lead with their 9 AFC North championships, with the Baltimore Ravens winning 6 times and Cincinnati Bengals 4 times.
So there are some numbers to help assess the Steelers’ victory over the Colts on Sunday. As unstable as the Steelers’ start was, changing things after the break was exactly what the team and its fan base needed for the 2020 postseason.
There were many more numbers than those listed above. Was there any other number that stood out for you? Please leave your answers in the comments below.