Welp, here we go again.
– Starting with the Buffalo Bills’ ground game. Buffalo racked up 249 yards on 51 carries against the Pittsburgh Steelers Sunday. It’s a record by an opponent at Heinz Field/Acrisure Stadium, the team’s home since 2001.
It’s the most allowed by Pittsburgh in any home game since 1975 when….the very same Bills produced 310 yards against the Steelers. O.J. Simpson led the way with 227 in a 30-21 Buffalo win.
– In any venue, the Bills’ 249 rushing yards yesterday tied for the seventh-most yards in a regular-season game against Pittsburgh since the 1970 merger. And tied for 34th-most in franchise history.
– Buffalo’s 51 rushing attempts are the most in any game, playoffs or not, against Pittsburgh since the 1985 New York Giants ran the ball 53 times in a 28-10 win over the Steelers. RB Joe Morris paved the way with 36 totes that day.
– Bills RB James Cook III led the charge with 32 carries. That’s the second-most by any single runner against Pittsburgh in the Mike Tomlin era, one behind D’Andre Swift’s 33 in a 2021 game against the Steelers. And that game went to overtime, ending in a 16-16 tie with the Detroit Lions.
In a regular-season game, Cook is No. 1. And the most in a non-overtime contest since St. Louis Rams RB Arlen Harris had 34 carries in a 2003 game. Harris rushed for just 84 yards that day but three touchdowns. More than 20 percent of Harris’ career carries came against Pittsburgh that day.
Fun fact: Harris is the only player named “Arlen” in NFL history.
– Pittsburgh ran just 43 offensive plays Sunday. It’s the second time in two years the Steelers managed no more than 43 snaps in a game, joining the 41 against the Philadelphia Eagles last season.
– The Steelers held the ball for just 18:01. Since time of possession became a recorded stat in 1983, it’s the second-lowest amount of time Pittsburgh has ever held the football. The only time the team was worse occurred in a 1983 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals in which the Steelers had the ball for just 17:52. Pittsburgh turned the ball over five times that day in a 23-10 defeat.
– Pittsburgh finished the game with just 166 yards of total offense. That’s the third fewest of the Tomlin era only behind last year against the Eagles (163) and a 2010 win over the Tennessee Titans (127). Two games I often refer to when talking about recent horrible offensive outputs. Yesterday sure joins them.
– The Steelers had just four passing first downs yesterday. Entering Sunday, only five teams have had fewer this season. It’s tied for the team’s third fewest of the Tomlin era, joining 2023’s loss to the Cleveland Browns (Matt Canada’s last game as OC), 2023’s loss to the Houston Texans, and that aforementioned 2010 defeat of the Titans. A game in which Pittsburgh had zero passing first downs.
– Mason Rudolph subbed in for Aaron Rodgers and went o-of-3 with an interception. He’s the first Steelers quarterback to throw a pick on no more than three attempts since Kent Graham in a 2000 win over the Oakland Raiders.
Rudolph is the first to fail to complete a pass and throw a pick since Jim Miller in 1995.
– Steelers running backs led all position groups in receptions. They had four compared to the wide receivers’ three (all from DK Metcalf) while the tight ends had another three. A pair by Darnell Washington and one by Jonnu Smith at the end of the first half that didn’t matter beyond trying to run a literal play after sitting on the bench for a literal half hour.
– For emphasis. Metcalf was the only Steelers wide receiver to catch a pass Sunday.
– Pittsburgh completed only 10 passes. That’s the third fewest of the Tomlin era. The only ones lower were nine-completion outings in 2019 against the Baltimore Ravens and 2010 against the Titans (there’s that game again). Contests played by Duck Hodges and Charlie Batch/Dennis Dixon. Yesterday, it was mostly Aaron Rodgers and those three attempts by Rudolph.
– In the receptions race, DK Metcalf is now one whole reception ahead of Kenneth Gainwell for the team lead. Metcalf is up to 45 on the season.
– I don’t think it counts as a positive stat, but DL Yahya Black’s nine tackles are the most by a Steelers rookie defensive lineman since at least 1996. I can’t find a recorded single-game example of someone ahead of Black’s mark.
– Back to the definitely bad. Pittsburgh has just one sack in its last two games. The defense also has only 3 QB hits.
– Pittsburgh failed to sack Allen despite the reigning NFL MVP being taken down eight times last week against the Houston Texans. Allen is the first quarterback to go from being sacked eight times one week to zero the next since the Tennessee Titans’ Will Levis in Week 12 last season. Which is a lot more recent than I expected. Also didn’t expect the answer to be Levis. But here we are.
– With his first-quarter pick yesterday, CB Brandin Echols tied a career single-season high with two interceptions.
– Pittsburgh is managing just 23.9 yards per kick return this season. It averaged 23 a year ago, last in the NFL. The Steelers are 30th this season.