Just the Facts: 2007 Steelers & Big Plays
In our ongoing review of the 2007 season, Football Brainiac will be taking a look at the statistics that matter most to NFL coaches.
Big plays are very important, game-breaking instances that can quickly change the course of a football game. The bigger the chunks of yardage a team can gain, the fewer chances there are to mess up on a long drive. Most NFL coaches agree that big plays can be determined as a run of 12 yards or more or a reception that gains 20 yards or more. So how did the 2007 Steelers do in the big play category? And how do they compare to previous seasons?
Total “Big Play” Rushes: 36 (1 for every 15 carries)
- Willie Parker: 22 (1 for every 15 carries)
- Najeh Devenport: 8 (1 for every 13 carries)
- Ben Roethlisberger: 4 (1 for every 9 carries)
- Cedrick Wilson: 2 (1 every carry)
- Carey Davis: 1 (1 for every 17 carries)
Willie Parker rushed for 22 “big plays” in 2007 in only 15 games. Compare that to 2006 where Willie, in 16 games, had 16 more carries and gained 178 more yards. But he only had 25 “big plays” of 12 yards or more last year. So this season should be considered an improvement over last season for FWP.
Total “Big Play” Passes: 39 (1 for every 10 pass attempts)
Big Ben improved in many areas this season: TDs, yards per completion and completion percentage. He also improved in the “Big Play” area as well. In 2006, Ben completed a 20 yard or more pass once in every 11 throws. In 2005, it was almost 1 for every 12. I think you can see that if this trend continues, Ben will really be able to change the face of a game even quicker than he is now.
Total “Big Play” Rushes Allowed: 23 (1 for every 15 carries)
- 1st 9 Games: 5 (1 for every 35 carries)
- Last 7 Games: 18 (1 for every 10 carries)
It’s no secret that the 2007 Steelers defense fizzled out by the end of the season. The big play category illustrates that perfectly. Big play runs almost quadrupled in the second half of the season. This is definitely worse than previous years. The 2006 defense surrendered 12 big runs and the Super Bowl team of ‘05 only gave up 14.
Total “Big Play” Passes Allowed: 28 (1 for every 19 pass attempts)
- 1st 9 Games: 11 (1 for every 26 pass attempts)
- Last 7 Games: 17 (1 for every 14 pass attempts)
The same defensive short circuit can be seen in the pass defense as well. There is good news, however. The 2007 Steelers pass defense, compared to the 2006 squad, allowed 49! That’s 21 more big plays than this season. That obviously contributed to the 8-8 record, methinks. And, by the way, the 2005 team surrendered 38!
As far as big plays go, then, we can see that the offense is improving and, actually, so is the pass defense. The run defense, though, needs to be sured up. Hopefully, with a healthy Aaron Smith, the Steelers run D will return to form next year.
January 10th, 2008 at 7:18 pm
Troy injurys and ryan Clark hurt the D more than anything , smith would have had a small impact if those 2 guys were healthy. The steelers need to tougher in the middle of the defesnse Haggins leaveing may not be a bad thing I do not think he played that tough , also Larry Foot a little soft, the D needs another corner back and 1 new lineman.
January 10th, 2008 at 9:08 pm
You’re right. They need to be more physical in the middle. I think that’s a direct correlation to the weakness of the ILB positions. I’ve heard speculation that Timmons may be moved inside, but we never really got a good look at him to see if he’s right for it. I guess we’ll see.
January 10th, 2008 at 9:54 pm
I agree replace Haggins with Woodley, replace Foote with Timmons. Put BA up in the booth and get him new glasses so he could see the whole field or fire his ass. Third and six do a qb sweep behind Essex how dumb was that.IF YOU ARE GOING TO CALL A PLAY LIKE THAT WHY NOT RUN BEHIND FANECA AND COLON. i AM STILL PISSED ABOUT THAT CALL. any comments.