35 Straight Games? Steelers Own NFL’s Longest Streak for Offensive Futility

The Steelers offense has been one of the more downtrodden units in football over the past two seasons. A lack of scoring, efficiency, and explosive plays have held back teams that were shut down in their tracks by the unit. One stat showcases the futility of the unit more than others.

It comes down to raw yardage. That does not always mean a lot, but sometimes when the rest of the offense collapses, they can tell a story. In the modern NFL, you need explosive plays to win and run up the score. Great quarterbacks routinely put up 30 or more points in the modern game.

But yardage should follow that. In 35 games under Matt Canada, the Steelers have less than 400 yards. He has coached only in 35 games for the team, meaning the team has not cracked the milestone one time under Canada. That 35 game streak is the longest in the NFL right now. The last time the team cracked the 400 yard mark was in their wild card loss to the Cleveland Browns during the 2020 season.

These struggles are not drawn to one factor. Sure, the first obvious one is Canada himself. The second is the quarterback play. Lastly, you have to check off the offensive line. All of those factors have combined to make for an offense that is putrid over the course of two seasons.

More specific factors would be the team’s inability to attack the middle of the field or run the ball for explosive plays. Najee Harris is not an explosive running back and has the worst yards before contact in the NFL since entering the league thanks to a porous offensive line. PFF noted that since Canada took over as offensive coordinator, the Steelers rank 31st in the NFL in yards between the numbers.

2023 has to be different for the team. They have finally added some legitimate depth around the team, and they should have a quarterback that is naturally ascending. Whether you believe in Canada or not, he and the rest of the offense need to step up in 2023.