Successful ground game can open more play-action success for Pickett

[pczach]

Successful ground game can open more play-action success for Pickett


by Corey Crisan


Getting the Steelers' ground game going is an all-encompassing benefit, and it especially goes that way for Kenny Pickett.
The Steelers rushed for a season-high 166 yards in Thursday's win over the Titans, marking a feat that is hoping to turn into a trend instead of remaining a blip for the development and progress of Matt Canada's offense. Najee Harris posted 69 of those yards, while Jaylen Warren was able to break through for a career-high 87 against the Titans. The top running backs also broke for a pair of explosive runs, as Harris' longest went for 25 yards and Warren's for 22 Thursday.


Conventionally, having a running game as successful as the Steelers' was only opens up more for Pickett and the Steelers' passing game. An opportunity for the ground game to flourish comes again Sunday, as the Packers' defense has allowed 124.0 yards per game on the ground.
"It was huge," Pickett said after Wednesday's practice on the South Side. "I thought the balance was there. (Harris and Warren) ran the ball great and the line was firing off the ball, staying clean the majority of the game. That's what we're trying to get to here."


Pickett has benefitted from the Steelers' usage of play-action, even with the running game largely struggling with consistency this season.
On those plays, Pickett has completed 20 of 27 passes (74.1%) for 228 yards and a 123.7 passer rating. Two of Pickett's six passing touchdowns this season were thrown as a result of play-action.
On play-action, Pickett is averaging 8.4 yards per attempt and 9.9 air yards per attempt, compared to 6.2 yards and 5.7 air yards on non-play-action plays this season. On non-play-action plays this season, Pickett is completing 59.6% of his passes with four touchdowns, four interceptions, and a 76.0 rating.
He has substantially improved with the usage of play-action this season compared to last. In 2022, Pickett completed 60% of his passes with no touchdowns, an interception, and a 65.9 rating out of play-action. He was also throwing it for shorter distances on those play-action passes in 2022, as he averaged 4.8 yards and 4.1 air yards per play-action pass.


"It all starts with the run and when you see it working well, that's when you start seeing the play-action opening up down the field," Pickett said. "Linebackers are stepping up, safeties are stepping up. You're able to have some explosive plays or have some really good intermediate routes that get guys open."
Pickett has also been effective in the limited passes afforded by RPO plays. On those run-pass-option selections, Pickett has completed 11 of 14 passes (78.6%) for 136 yards, one touchdown, and zero interceptions for a 131.0 rating. On non-RPO plays, Pickett has completed just 60.2% for five touchdowns, four interceptions, and a 78.4 rating.

Read the rest here: https://dkpittsburghsports.com/2023/...alysis-nfl-cdc

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The question becomes, why isn't play action being used more?

Canada's schemes are mind-boggling to me. His lack of motion. His route combinations. His lack of option routes(not 100% sure how they do/don't use them.) The lack of hot routes.

How can anyone look at those numbers and not think that it would probably be a good idea to put more of that into the offensive system and utilize that much more often?

Again, it blows my mind trying to figure out what is going on in Matt Canada's mind.

[Mojouw]

The really maddening thing is that there’s years of NFL game and team data to demonstrate that play action works even when your run game is awful.

Even mediocre play action and associated motion stuff works as LBs and DBs can’t resist. And you don’t have to be that good or frequent of a run team to do it. The Chiefs used to make their living off of it.

Canada’s what happens when someone watches things that work, tries to copy them, but has no idea why the original worked or the principles it was built on.

[86WARD]

Play action doesn’t exist in Pittsburgh. Hasn’t in years…

[pczach]

The really maddening thing is that there’s years of NFL game and team data to demonstrate that play action works even when your run game is awful.

Even mediocre play action and associated motion stuff works as LBs and DBs can’t resist. And you don’t have to be that good or frequent of a run team to do it. The Chiefs used to make their living off of it.

Canada’s what happens when someone watches things that work, tries to copy them, but has no idea why the original worked or the principles it was built on.

Agreed.

When you see stuff like this with all the obviously positive numbers, it really makes you wonder what in the hell coaches are thinking about? Do they even calculate these numbers and have this knowledge already, or does someone point this out to them an be like......"maybe we should be doing more of this".

I mean seriously. How can someone have this information and not act on it. I am beginning to wonder if there are any analytics or stat nerds present within the organization that tabulates and processes this stuff and works in conjunction with the GM and coaching staff. How in the hell can play action not be a bigger part of the formula if you know these stats to be true? It doesn't make any sense.

I think you are correct about Canada. All he sees are routes within a play on paper. He doesn't seem to understand any of the nuance within the plays that truly make them work. He doesn't seem to understand while running the plays that there needs to be subtle adjustments to routes based on coverage. That the exact yardage of the routes and the way they may need to be run just outside the hash in this situation, or that when you get zone, you break this route off here and find the soft spot. I don't feel there is any of that in this offense. None. It is just another play on a piece of paper with lines showing the route that is supposed to be run.

This is the football equivalent of caveman level thinking. But even more disturbing is that coaches on this team can't even figure out that this play action thing actually works, your quarterback plays better using it, and the offense would work better having more of it called.

Again...mind-blowing.

[BlackAndGold]

It's a myth that a team needs a good running game to successfully use play action. They simply don't do it.

[tube517]

From 2021

https://steelerswire.usatoday.com/20...r-play-action/

Sent from my SM-F711U using Tapatalk

[Steeler-in-west]

it’s Ben’s fault, he never liked play action. I think Maddox used it although I’m not sure about that. Found this interesting article from 2019… I guess the answer was a No…

https://www.behindthesteelcurtain.com/platform/amp/2019/9/19/20873399/will-mason-rudolph-bring-back-the-play-action-pass-to-the-pittsburgh-steelers-ben-roethlisberger

[pczach]

Play action doesn’t exist in Pittsburgh. Hasn’t in years…

It's never used enough.

We know that there are risks. Bad things can happen if the offense blows an assignment or there is an unblocked blitzer when the quarterback has his back to the defense. A turnover or a big loss is a possibility, but in a general sense play action works. The fact that this team has gone out of their way to make their mission statement to run the football for the last whatever number of years, yet don't utilize play action nearly enough considering it is the perfect compliment to what they are trying to do offensively is ridiculous and should be considered an embarrassment to the coaching staff developing a young QB.

It makes my head hurt just thinking about it.