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2018 Week 1 · Sun, Sep 9, 2018 · FirstEnergy Stadium
21
21
A 21–21 tie. Biggest swing: OT 1:28, CLE +70% win probability on one snap.
The game in one curve — scrub to replay it
(1:28) 4-B.Colquitt punts 52 yards to PIT 16, Center-47-C.Hughlett. 10-R.Switzer to PIT 26 for 10 yards (82-O.Charles; 37-D.Rice).
Down-to-down truth
| Metric | Steelers | Browns |
|---|---|---|
| Offensive plays | 79 | 84 |
| Total yards | 473 (edge) | 327 |
| Yards per play | 6.0 (edge) | 3.9 |
| Expected points added / play | -0.15 (edge) | -0.16 |
| Success rate | 42% (edge) | 33% |
| Dropback rate | 58% | 63% |
| Dropback efficiency (EPA/play) | -0.09 (edge) | -0.23 |
| Rush efficiency (EPA/play) | -0.23 | -0.04 (edge) |
| Third downs | 7/15 (edge) | 5/18 |
| Red-zone trips → TDs | 0 → 0 | 0 → 0 |
| Explosive plays (10+ rush / 20+ pass) | 9 | 9 |
| First downs gained on snaps | 24 (edge) | 16 |
| Sacks taken | 4 (edge) | 7 |
| Turnovers | 6 | 1 (edge) |
Steelers won the down-to-down efficiency fight: -0.15 expected points added per play vs -0.16.
Who moved the needle
Passing · PIT
23/41, 335 yds, 1 TD, 3 INT
-6.7 expected points added · -10.0% completion over expected
Passing · CLE
15/40, 197 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
-18.5 expected points added · -20.1% completion over expected
Receiving · PIT
5/8 for 119 yds, 0 TD
20% of team targets · 6.0 expected points added
Receiving · CLE
7/15 for 106 yds, 0 TD
39% of team targets · -4.3 expected points added
Possession by possession
| # | Team | Start | Plays | Scrim yds | Clock | Result | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | PIT | PIT 25 | 5 | 8 | 1:31 | Punt | |
| 2 | CLE | CLE 36 | 7 | 26 | 3:21 | Punt | |
| 3 | PIT | PIT 20 | 6 | 23 | 2:29 | Punt | |
| 4 | CLE | CLE 14 | 5 | -4 | 1:15 | Punt | |
| 5 | PIT | 50 | 4 | 27 | 1:02 | Interception | |
| 6 | CLE | CLE 10 | 7 | 21 | 3:27 | Punt | |
| 7 | PIT | PIT 12 | 11 | 84 | 5:39 | Touchdown | |
| 8 | CLE | CLE 25 | 9 | 38 | 3:46 | Punt | |
| 9 | PIT | PIT 12 | 1 | 0 | 0:11 | Interception | |
| 10 | CLE | CLE 28 | 8 | 31 | 4:46 | Punt | |
| 11 | PIT | PIT 9 | 7 | 54 | 1:51 | Interception | |
| 12 | CLE | PIT 45 | 2 | -14 | 0:42 | End of half | |
| 13 | CLE | CLE 14 | 12 | 66 | 4:55 | Touchdown | |
| 14 | PIT | PIT 26 | 5 | 94 | 1:41 | Touchdown | |
| 15 | CLE | CLE 8 | 7 | 6 | 2:16 | Punt | |
| 16 | PIT | CLE 39 | 3 | 39 | 0:45 | Touchdown | |
| 17 | CLE | CLE 11 | 8 | 42 | 1:56 | Punt | |
| 18 | PIT | PIT 14 | 13 | 52 | 6:16 | Punt | |
| 19 | CLE | CLE 12 | 4 | -1 | 1:21 | Punt | |
| 20 | PIT | PIT 14 | 5 | 5 | 2:08 | Punt | |
| 21 | CLE | PIT 47 | 7 | 24 | 0:58 | Turnover on downs | |
| 22 | PIT | PIT 18 | 1 | -1 | 0:08 | Fumble | |
| 23 | CLE | PIT 1 | 2 | 1 | 0:04 | Touchdown | |
| 24 | PIT | PIT 28 | 3 | 9 | 0:51 | Fumble | |
| 25 | CLE | PIT 37 | 4 | -2 | 1:27 | Punt | |
| 26 | PIT | PIT 5 | 7 | 14 | 3:04 | Punt | |
| 27 | CLE | CLE 45 | 3 | 55 | 0:12 | Touchdown | |
| 28 | PIT | PIT 31 | 5 | 1 | 0:29 | Punt | |
| 29 | CLE | CLE 29 | 5 | 23 | 1:13 | Interception | |
| 30 | PIT | PIT 8 | 1 | 0 | 0:16 | Turnover on downs | |
| 31 | CLE | CLE 25 | 5 | 9 | 1:17 | Punt | |
| 32 | PIT | PIT 17 | 6 | 21 | 3:14 | Punt | |
| 33 | CLE | CLE 19 | 4 | 7 | 0:58 | Punt | |
| 34 | PIT | PIT 45 | 8 | 31 | 2:47 | Turnover on downs | |
| 35 | CLE | CLE 32 | 4 | 0 | 0:27 | Punt | |
| 36 | PIT | PIT 26 | 3 | 12 | 0:41 | Fumble | |
| 37 | CLE | PIT 24 | 3 | -1 | 0:27 | Turnover on downs | |
| 38 | PIT | PIT 33 | 1 | 0 | 0:09 | End of game |
0 of 38 drives ended in points. Longest march: Steelers gained 94 scrimmage yards over 5 plays for a touchdown.
Full stat lines
| Player | C/Att | Yds | TD | INT | Sacked | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ben Roethlisberger | 23/41 | 335 | 1 | 3 | 4 | -6.7 |
| Player | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| James Conner | 31 | 135 | 4.4 | 2 | -8.3 |
| Ben Roethlisberger | 3 | 16 | 5.3 | 0 | 3.0 |
| Ryan Switzer | 1 | 8 | 8.0 | 0 | 0.1 |
| Player | Rec | Tgt | Yds | TD | Tgt share | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| JuJu Smith-Schuster | 5 | 8 | 119 | 0 | 20% | 6.0 |
| Antonio Brown | 9 | 16 | 93 | 1 | 39% | -3.3 |
| Jesse James | 3 | 5 | 60 | 0 | 12% |
| Player | Solo | Ast | Sacks | INT | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vince Williams | 4 | 8 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| T.J. Watt | 7 | 3 | 3.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jon Bostic | 4 | 5 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cameron Heyward |
| Player | C/Att | Yds | TD | INT | Sacked | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tyrod Taylor | 15/40 | 197 | 1 | 1 | 7 | -18.5 |
| Player | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tyrod Taylor | 8 | 77 | 9.6 | 1 |
Closing number vs result
Steelers closed -3.5 and lost outright — an upset against the closing number.
Total closed 41; the game landed 42 — over by 1.0.
Conditions and crew
Division game — familiarity tightens these matchups; closing numbers tend to be sharper.
| 0.1 |
| James Conner | 5 | 6 | 57 | 0 | 15% | 2.6 |
| Justin Hunter | 1 | 5 | 6 | 0 | 12% | -0.4 |
| Ryan Switzer | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2% | -0.8 |
| 5 |
| 2 |
| 1.0 |
| 0 |
| 0 |
| Bud Dupree | 4 | 1 | 1.0 | 0 | 2 |
| Sean Davis | 4 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 2 |
| Stephon Tuitt | 4 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Javon Hargrave | 3 | 1 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tyler Matakevich | 3 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike Hilton | 3 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 2 |
| 7.5 |
| Carlos Hyde | 22 | 62 | 2.8 | 1 | -2.6 |
| Nick Chubb | 3 | 21 | 7.0 | 0 | 0.7 |
| Duke Johnson | 5 | 17 | 3.4 | 0 | -0.2 |
| Player | Rec | Tgt | Yds | TD | Tgt share | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jarvis Landry | 7 | 15 | 106 | 0 | 39% | -4.3 |
| Rashard Higgins | 1 | 3 | 38 | 0 | 8% | 2.0 |
| Josh Gordon | 1 | 3 | 17 | 1 | 8% | 1.0 |
| David Njoku | 3 | 7 | 13 | 0 | 18% | -5.1 |
| Darren Fells | 1 | 1 | 12 | 0 | 3% | 1.0 |
| Duke Johnson | 1 | 6 | 8 | 0 | 16% | -3.9 |
| Carlos Hyde | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 5% | -0.6 |
| Antonio Callaway | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3% | -0.5 |
| Player | Solo | Ast | Sacks | INT | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Joe Schobert | 2 | 6 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 |
| Larry Ogunjobi | 3 | 4 | 1.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Myles Garrett | 5 | 1 | 2.0 | 0 | 1 |
| Jabrill Peppers | 3 | 3 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Denzel Ward | 2 | 4 | 0.0 | 2 | 3 |
| Jamie Collins | 4 | 2 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 |
| Terrance Mitchell | 6 | 0 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 |
| Damarious Randall | 4 | 1 | 0.0 | 1 | 2 |
| Briean Boddy-Calhoun | 4 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| Christian Kirksey | 3 | 2 | 0.0 | 0 | 1 |
