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Thread: Time of Possession Revisited

  1. #1
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    Time of Possession Revisited

    Decided to take a little closer look at the time of possession this past season. Previous posts on average ToP by quarter seemed to show pretty consistent offensive production and our overall averages ranked the Steelers 4th in the league.

    The following is eye-opening and falls in line with what I and a few others believed true. The following are avg ToP by quarter:

    Quarter.....1st...........2nd..........3rd........ ....4th.........OT

    Won.........8:29.........7:39.........6:33........ ...9:12
    Lost.........9:17.........7:37.........8:28....... ....6:40......4:45

    The Steelers clearly struggled to keep the ball in the offense's hands late in games that resulted in losses. Curiously, the 3rd quarter was not an issue and it is easy to see that the 3rd and 4th quarters cancelled between wins and losses when looking at overall averages. But there is no mistaking, we lost games when we didn't hold the ball late.

  2. #2
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    Re: Time of Possession Revisited

    Quote Originally Posted by NorthCoast
    Decided to take a little closer look at the time of possession this past season. Previous posts on average ToP by quarter seemed to show pretty consistent offensive production and our overall averages ranked the Steelers 4th in the league.

    The following is eye-opening and falls in line with what I and a few others believed true. The following are avg ToP by quarter:

    Quarter.....1st...........2nd..........3rd........ ....4th.........OT

    Won.........8:29.........7:39.........6:33........ ...9:12
    Lost.........9:17.........7:37.........8:28....... ....6:40......4:45

    The Steelers clearly struggled to keep the ball in the offense's hands late in games that resulted in losses. Curiously, the 3rd quarter was not an issue and it is easy to see that the 3rd and 4th quarters cancelled between wins and losses when looking at overall averages. But there is no mistaking, we lost games when we didn't hold the ball late.
    Nice post, northcoast!

    It also confirms a gut feeling I had - the games we lost hurt triple bad, because it seemed we came out on fire so much in each of those games, it seemed like we were going to romp. Then we ran into a wall in the 4th qrtr . I remember multiple games screaming at Ariens in the 3rd quarter as the tide slowly turned against us, then ultimately a horrible 4th qrtr, and that's all she wrote.

    I'm too to be any more ...


    We got our "6-PACK" - time to work on a CASE!

    HERE WE GO STEELERS, HERE WE GO!

  3. #3
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    Re: Time of Possession Revisited

    SA, that's what ticked me off about this season. we'd come out, look unbeatable then get a little bit of a lead and bam, lose.


  4. #4
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    Re: Time of Possession Revisited

    Part of the problem is playcalling--lack of in-game adjustments (both O and D).
    Part of the problem is age--too many greybeards on defense.
    Part of the problem is not being able (or willing) to run the ball when we need to.

  5. #5
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    Re: Time of Possession Revisited

    I find it hard to believe that anyone who watched the games can think that we didn't make the playoffs because of the offence.

    Other ToP numbers we looked at said that the defence absolutely blew in the 4th, giving up 2 or 3 times more points per minute of defensive play than they did in qtrs 1 - 3. That has nothing to do with the offence. That's just the defence putting on the suck and giving up quick scores at the end of games. Whenever we had a lead less than 8, and the D had the ball, I was just hoping that they would give up the TD with > 2:00 left so that the O had a chance to win. This team needed the O to have the ball last because the D was that bad at the end of games.

  6. #6
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    Re: Time of Possession Revisited

    Quote Originally Posted by Northern_Blitz
    I find it hard to believe that anyone who watched the games can think that we didn't make the playoffs because of the offence.

    Other ToP numbers we looked at said that the defence absolutely blew in the 4th, giving up 2 or 3 times more points per minute of defensive play than they did in qtrs 1 - 3. That has nothing to do with the offence. That's just the defence putting on the suck and giving up quick scores at the end of games. Whenever we had a lead less than 8, and the D had the ball, I was just hoping that they would give up the TD with > 2:00 left so that the O had a chance to win. This team needed the O to have the ball last because the D was that bad at the end of games.
    The D sucked in the 4th, no question. But look at it this way--if the O can knock out a
    long, sustained drive or two late in the game, it keeps our defense off the field and those old men don't get as tired. PLUS, we keep the other team's offense OFF the field--and when they are off the field, they can't score.

    BOTH our O and D need work, IMO. The Defense needs MORE, no doubt ... but I'd like to see BOTH be the best they can be. Then, assuming we get our STs turned around, we'd be a Super Bowl contender again.

  7. #7
    Legend

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    Re: Time of Possession Revisited

    When you need long sustaining drives to protect the D against Oakland and KC you deserve to miss the playoffs.
    I lost a bet about Najee gaining 1300 yards.

    "Our head coach has failed to win a playoff game for seven years in a row. His game day strategy, culture of divas, in game decisions, clock management, player evaluation, hires, and affinity with sub par starters at RB, P, and OL are holding the Steelers back. That standard remains the standard"



  8. #8
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    Re: Time of Possession Revisited

    The solution for a sorry defense is a run offense which we couldn't do when we needed to. Got to wonder if conditioning/age had to do with the late season collapses. Oh and let's not forget the points given up by the STs. Bottom line this was a sorry season top to bottom and side to side. O, D, ST, Coaches sucked.
    ours is not to wonder why just invert and multiply...

  9. #9
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    Re: Time of Possession Revisited

    Quote Originally Posted by BradshawsHairdresser
    Quote Originally Posted by Northern_Blitz
    I find it hard to believe that anyone who watched the games can think that we didn't make the playoffs because of the offence.

    Other ToP numbers we looked at said that the defence absolutely blew in the 4th, giving up 2 or 3 times more points per minute of defensive play than they did in qtrs 1 - 3. That has nothing to do with the offence. That's just the defence putting on the suck and giving up quick scores at the end of games. Whenever we had a lead less than 8, and the D had the ball, I was just hoping that they would give up the TD with > 2:00 left so that the O had a chance to win. This team needed the O to have the ball last because the D was that bad at the end of games.
    The D sucked in the 4th, no question. But look at it this way--if the O can knock out a
    long, sustained drive or two late in the game, it keeps our defense off the field and those old men don't get as tired. PLUS, we keep the other team's offense OFF the field--and when they are off the field, they can't score.

    BOTH our O and D need work, IMO. The Defense needs MORE, no doubt ... but I'd like to see BOTH be the best they can be. Then, assuming we get our STs turned around, we'd be a Super Bowl contender again.
    In in ideal world every team in the league would be able sustain long drives to end games. I don't believes it happens as often as some think. There are many times that teams that play the percentages and put the game into the hands of their defenses. Our defense happened to fail in those situations.

    This excuse about being tired and old is an excuse. I agree that all areas of the team need to improve.

  10. #10
    Legend

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    Re: Time of Possession Revisited

    Quote Originally Posted by costanza2k1
    The solution for a sorry defense is a run offense which we couldn't do when we needed to. Got to wonder if conditioning/age had to do with the late season collapses. Oh and let's not forget the points given up by the STs. Bottom line this was a sorry season top to bottom and side to side. O, D, ST, Coaches sucked.
    There is no solution for a sorry defense except to play better.

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