TBF we barely used the middle of the field when Muth was healthy.
Also FWIW other offenses that don’t use the middle of the field any more than we do statistically include the Eagles and Chiefs.
NFL offenses are aware throws outside the hashes are less risky and produce bigger average gains.
They haven’t consistently targeted the middle of the field for nearly a decade. Teams, not just the Steelers, are afraid to attack the middle because that’s where there are more defenders and the best chance of a turnover. And let’s make this clear: It’s not much different than the rest of the league. The Steelers have targeted the middle of the field 15 percent of the time, according to nfeloapp.com, which ranks 26th in the NFL. That’s ahead of top offenses like the Bengals, Bills, Eagles, Cowboys and Chiefs.
This.
Before getting super excited for this, we should check out what his usage was before the injury.
Am I the only one not super excited that Muth is back? I mean don’t get me wrong he’s a good player, but he was never really good at blocking and we don’t even throw him the ball (when he was in). Would’ve preferred if Minkah came back tbh
Honestly if we could just figure this out, dare I say Canada’s offense might become respectable. He knows how to set up a running game when the personnel does their job, but every throw feels like it’s either low percentage or low value. “Empty calories” was a phrase used by commentator recently. It’s all behind the LoS, short crossers, or sideline back shoulder/jump balls/comebacks/go routes.
We have competent pass catchers with diverse skill sets. If the running game and offensive line are (finally) clicking, how about a play action post or deep in route or something? Make the linebackers jump and go for some easy pitch and catch over their heads. The Shanahan crews do stuff like this all the time. Surely we can adapt and add.
One other thing I want to them to stop doing is the designed roll outs after play-action, since we saw last week that Kenny almost threw pick or had to throw it away everytime, because everyone were covered and there were only supertight windows to throw into.
Truck question because the Steelers don’t plan on using any of the field!