The LabThe fingerprint of every playbook

Pittsburgh SteelersScheme DNA

Slowest tempo, most rpo rate in the league. Their closest twin is Packers (57% alike), then Browns and Texans. 482 offensive snaps read, 482 of them charted.

League map Steelers verdict JSON

Tempo40.1s0th percentile · league 38.0s

RPO rate10.4%97th percentile · league 5.2%

Pre-snap motion46.7%3th percentile · league 58.8%

Play action16.2%7th percentile · league 23.0%

Bottom lineTheir loudest habits: tempo (40.1s, 0th percentile), rpo rate (10.4%, 97th percentile), pre-snap motion (46.7%, 3th percentile).

How to read this chart

The flower:: each petal is one play-calling habit, labeled around the edge. Petal length is the team's rank among the 32 (long = does it more than most; for tempo, long = fast). The dashed ring is the league middle.
The bars:: the same habits as a list: the bar is the rank (the tick in the middle is the league middle), then the real value and the percentile (90 = more than 90% of teams). Jargon: pass rate over expected = how much more or less they throw than the situation predicts; RPO = run-pass option; men in the box = defenders near the line against the run.

Offense

The playbook

Pass rate over expected+2.5%87

Early-down pass rate56.7%87

Shotgun rate66.4%71

No-huddle rate7.1%65

Pre-snap motion46.7%3

Play action16.2%7

Screen rate13.2%97

RPO rate10.4%97

Deep shots13.3%77

Middle of the field21.9%61

Outside runs21.3%32

Tempo40.1s0

Defense

The defense

Blitz rate27.5%45

Five-plus rushers27.5%45

Men in the box6.6668

Stacked boxes9.0%58

Pass rate faced+2.5%90

Deep shots allowed11.7%58

Defensive twins: Lions (81%), Dolphins (80%), Broncos (80%).

Twins

Offenses most like theirs

Solid shape: Steelers · outline: the twin

Bottom lineSteelers and Packers, 57% alike. Both run more RPOs and use less play action than most of the league; Steelers and Packers differ most in pre-snap motion (46.7% vs 61.2%) and tempo (40.1s vs 38.3s).

How to read this chart

Each card is one twin:: an offense that calls games like Steelers. The colored shape is Steelers's fingerprint, the white outline the twin's. Where the two match, the habits match.
The %: is how alike the two are across all offensive habits: 100% would be identical, 0% the most different pair in the league.

#1 twinPackers57%Both run more RPOs and use less play action than most of the league; Steelers and Packers differ most in pre-snap motion (46.7% vs 61.2%) and tempo (40.1s vs 38.3s).

#2 twinBrowns55%Both use less play action and throw more screens than most of the league; Steelers and Browns differ most in tempo (40.1s vs 38.4s) and outside runs (21.3% vs 30.9%).

#3 twinTexans51%Both pass more on early downs and take more deep shots than most of the league; Steelers and Texans differ most in screen rate (13.2% vs 6.4%) and RPO rate (10.4% vs 4.1%).

Run game

Where they run

Arrow size = share of carries · color = EPA per carry

Bottom lineTheir favorite lane: middle, 29% of runs, +0.41 EPA per carry.

How to read this chart

Seen from behind the offense:: the line at the bottom is the line of scrimmage, with seven running lanes from the left end to the right end.
Arrow size: and the % above it = share of the team's runs that go there.
Arrow color: = how well those runs work, in EPA per carry (expected points added: above zero helps the offense). Green works, grey is average, red hurts.

Pass game

Where they throw

Share of targets · EPA per throw

Bottom lineMost targeted zone: short right, 34% of throws, -0.05 EPA per throw.

How to read this chart

The field from the quarterback's eyes:: left, middle and right; the bottom row is short throws, the top row deep throws.
Each box: shows the share of throws that go there (more solid = more throws) and its color the EPA per throw: green helps the offense, grey is average, red hurts.

Formation Tell

What the formation gives away

How to read this chart

Two dots on one line from 0% to 100%:: how often they throw when the quarterback is under center, and how often from shotgun, on neutral downs.
The gap between them: is what a defense learns from the formation alone: a wide gap means the alignment tips run or pass.

Under center30%pass rate, neutral downs

Shotgun80%pass rate, neutral downs

A 50-point gap: one of the most readable offenses in the league (3 of 32). See all 32 →