Steelers Are Behind Rest of NFL in One Key Metric

Pittsburgh Steelers HC Mike Tomlin
Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin against the Baltimore Ravens on Jan. 11, 2025 -- Ed Thompson / Steelers Now

Four teams in the NFL have a fourth-down conversion rate above 70%. All four of those teams are in the Conference Championships.

The Washington Commanders lead the NFL with a remarkable 87.0% conversion rate on fourth down, followed by the Buffalo Bills (72.7%), Kansas City Chiefs (70.6%) and Philadelphia Eagles (70.4%).

Meanwhile, the Pittsburgh Steelers ranked 31st in the NFL in fourth-down conversation rate (38.9%) this season. Only the Dallas Cowboys were worse (35.7%).

Fourth-down woes were an issue for the Steelers all season, especially during the five-game losing streak to end the season.

With the Steelers trailing 24-17 with 15 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter and possessing the ball at Baltimore’s 46-yard line in Week 16, head coach Mike Tomlin decided to go for it.

The Steelers got a good look, as Calvin Austin III was open downfield but Ravens All-Pro safety Kyle Hamilton came in at the last second to break up the pass.

Then two plays later, Marlon Humphrey pretty much put the nail in the coffin with a 37-yard pick-six.

“I thought it was a little bit out of balance probably prior to that,” Tomlin said when asked if the early fourth-quarter sequence changed the outcome of the game. “As I mentioned, we never controlled the run game. When you’re not controlling the run game, you’re not going to have a sense of comfort in terms of the flow of it, and that was the case.”

RELATED: Steelers HC Mike Tomlin Defends Aggressive Fourth-Down Decision

In the Steelers’ Week 18 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, Tomlin elected to go for it on a fourth-and-1 in his own territory late in the first half, a decision that backfired when Jaylen Warren was stopped short of the line to gain, and the Bengals went into the half with a 13-7 lead.

The Steelers defense mitigated the damage, but Cincinnati was able to double their lead going into the half thanks to a 27-yard Cade York field goal on the back of the Pittsburgh offense’s fourth-down failure.

The Steelers looked like they had the first down on their second-down play, when Pat Freiermuth caught a ball in the flat and stumbled toward the sideline. He was initially marked for a first down, but on replay, was ruled a yard short.

RELATED: Steelers Aggressiveness on 4th Down Backfires after Review

Despite being low on time with under one minute left in the half, the Steelers lined up and ran a quarterback sneak with Russell Wilson. Once again, he was marked by the on-field officials as having gained a first down, before replay overturned that decision.

Facing 4th and 1 at their own 37-yard line and 49 seconds left in the half, Tomlin chose not to send the punt team onto the field. Instead, Wilson turned and handed the ball off to running back Jaylen Warren.

Warren tried to go off left tackle on the handoff, but he was tacked quickly by linebacker Germaine Pratt and cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt. For the third time, Warren was marked as having gained the first down, before replay corrected the spot and gave Cincinnati the ball.

The lack of production on fourth-down will have to be an area the Steelers look to correct this offseason. They are clearly behind the elite teams in this one key metric.

Alan Saunders contributed reporting for this story.

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