When a team rushes for 300 plus yards in the first three games of any season fans generally will not question the vitality of their team’s rushing game. There are usually never any real concerns.
The Steelers have rushed for close to 400 yards, and we have not played a quarter of the season. So why should there be any concerns? James Conner himself has two games reaching the century mark and appears to be the workhorse fans desire. Benny Snell even did the same in the week one game against the New York Giants.
Statistics, though, can be very deceptive at times, as is the case with the Steelers. When you take a more in-depth look behind the rushing statistics of the last three Steelers games, it raises some questions Steelers fans need to consider in advance of their game with the Tenessee Titans.
Is James Conner Viable as the Number one Back?
The first primary concern about the Steelers rushing game reared its ugly head in the very first game of the young 2020 season. James Conner suffered yet another injury. His third in three seasons.
James Conner suffered an injury late in 2018 and missed three of his last four games late in the season. Suffering another injury, he missed six games in 2019 and only posted 464 total rushing yards with only 110 rushing attempts, down from 215 attempts in 2018. Now he has already in 2020, missed most of the first game with an ankle sprain.
James Conner does seem to prone to injuries. Running backs in the NFL never fare well in the end. Fortunately, Conner returned quickly for week two. How long Conner stays healthy as the season progresses should be of concern. Injuries may have been the first and foremost concern on head coach Mike Tomlin’s going into the game with the Eagles and beyond as well, which raises another potential question. That aside, so long as Conner remains injury-free, the Steelers running game should flourish, and Conner could surpass the 978 yards he gained in 2018. Another injury, though, could put that prevent that and hamper any playoff run.
Now undoubtedly, this leads to the most crucial question the Steelers need to answer going into their game with the Tennessee Titans, which will into their postponed until Monday or Tuesday.
How good is the Steelers rushing game?
Now, this is where things get intriguing, especially breaking down the rushing stats from the last three games. No one wants to take away from how well the Steelers running backs have performed so far, 414 yards in three games is a lot of yardage. Yet by dissecting the rushing game can shed some light as to the actual state of the Steelers rushing game and might give some insight as to what to expect in week four. If there is anything fans should have any concern over, this would be the most pertinent.
The most important thing to note is that unlike the game against the Giants, the Steelers rushing game did not deliver a decisive blow to the opposition allowing the Broncos and Texans chances to come close to winning or keeping the score uncomfortably close late in the game.
In the game against the Broncos, one needs to keep in mind that until 1:47 left in the fourth quarter, the Steelers only had 37 rushing yards until James Conner unleashed a 59-yard rush. Not a stellar performance by any stretch of the imagination. They only padded their rushing stats after the Bronco’s defense was worn down late in the game.
The Steelers did amass 92 yards by the end of the third quarter against the Texans. The effort still failed to keep the Texans from holding a one-point lead going into the fourth quarter. So here is the peculiar statistic about the Steelers rushing game so far. In their first three games, the Steelers have averaged only 74.33 yards a game through the first three quarters or about 24.77 yards per quarter.
The fourth quarter tells a different tale. Over the same three games in the fourth quarter, the Steelers have averaged 65.33 yards per quarter. So why is this alarming? First, the upswing in yardage in the last quarter has come from the fact they played weak teams that by the fourth quarter, the defense was tired enough to allow the Steelers to break rushes, which helped them lock the game away.
Secondly, in 2020 the combined record of the New York Giants, Denver Broncos, and Houston Texans is a dismal 0-9. They are not very good teams. Even in 2019, despite the Texans having a winning record, all three teams had a combined record of 21-27. All three seemed to have gotten worse since 2019. So the Steelers rushing stats are more than adequate for teams of this stature.
Also, The Giants are currently ranked 31st against the run, Texans are ranked 30th, and the Broncos are 20th. Not really a substantial test of the Steelers rushing game. Week five may not be much of a test either. The eagles are 1-2-1.
Leaving the first crucial test of the Steelers to come after the game with the Eagles when they face Cleveland, Baltimore, both twice, and Tennessee. The Eagles are, despite their record, ranked fourth against the rush, the Browns are ranked one against the rush, The Titans are 12th, and the Ravens ranked fourth. Then later the Steelers have the Colts who are 15th currently. So the Steelers running will be put to the test in the coming weeks.
So, it’s too early to start sounding any alarms about the rushing game; however, as the season goes on and the Steelers face opponents of a higher caliber, it will determine how good the Steelers rushing game truly is.
Are The Steelers Now Running Back By Committee?
Just hearing the term running back by committee is enough to make any Steelers fan shudder. This is something Steeler Coach’s have never done. More than likely Mike Tomlin will not do this; however, if he does use his running backs in this manner, there are some potential reasons.
Primarily it could be that Mike Tomlin has taken James Conner’s durability into question. Which, to be frank, might not be a bad idea. If he has other running backs at his disposal, why not utilize them as well, reduce the wear and tear to try to keep the unit as healthy as possible going into the playoffs. Rookie Running back Anthony McFarland made his debut against the Texans. He put up nice numbers too. McFarland had six rushes for 42 yards a seven yards per carry average, whereas Conner had 11 rushes for 44 yards, only a four-yard per carry average through the third quarter. His average only went up with fourth-quarter successes.
Secondly, though not as likely, Mike Tomlin has lost some faith in Conner. In the games against Denver and Houston, he has not done overly well early on. In week two against Denver, in the last two minutes fourth quarter, Conner went three carries for 63 yards until then, he only had 13 rushes for 43 yards. Against the Texans, in the fourth quarter, he had seven rushes for 65 yards. Perhaps Mike Tomlin has some performance concerns. Although in fairness, if he had decided not to utilize McFarland, it’s probably safe to assume Conner might have had a few more yards. So, more than likely, Tomlin has not lost any faith in his number one back, yet depending on how well he performs in the next four to five games, we will have a more definitive answer.
Another option possibly is that Tomlin wants to start grooming Anthony McFarland to take the number one back slot. Given his performance against the Texans, he is off to a good start. Sure he is a fourth-round draft pick, but may stars have come out of the mid to later portion of the draft. Just ask Tom Brady. Certainly, McFarland had a good career at Maryland. He started at Maryland for two years and had 1648 yards rushing with 245 attempts netting him a 6.72 yards per carry average and 71.65 yards per game. No wonder the Steelers drafted him. He also showed he could move and cut like Le’Veon Bell used to do for the Steelers. While this scenario is not highly likely, another serious injury to James Conner could change that.
Lastly, because of Mcfarland’s performance, will Benny Snell be downgraded? Face it after Snell’s game against the Giants; he has ten carries for 20 yards. Granted, it could be he had a bad performance against the Broncos and that because Tomlin split up the carries over his entire running back corps in against the Texans. In Any case, if McFarland keeps improving, especially if Tomlin gives him more carries than Snell, McFarland may leapfrog him in the depth chart. Again, we won’t know till after week four or later. Also, again, all of this is contingent on Conner staying healthy. One play can change things in a heartbeat in the NFL. In one play, Saquon Barkley tore his ACL and is out for the season.
For now, though, fans should be happy with the Steelers rushing game. Yes, there are some concerns and questions, for now, we have to wait for the Steelers to play the next few games for any definitive answers. So, for now, whatever direction the Steelers running game goes, as long as they get the win, that’s the best stat of all.