Crunching the Numbers: The Pittsburgh Steelers, the game after

3-2

In games where the Steelers have scored more than 50 points, they have an all-time record of 3–2 the following week. In 1952 and 1954, the Steelers were victorious the week after scoring 63 and 55 points respectively. The Steelers scored 57 points in their final game of 1967 to bring their record to 5-8-1, so there was no game the following week. In 1979 and 1984, the Steelers lost the week following their 51-point and 52-point performances. In 2014, Ben Roethlisberger followed up his 51-35 win over the Indianapolis Colts with a 43-23 defeat of Baltimore the following week, thowing six touchdowns with a 136.3 QBR.

5 vs. 2

In the five games the Steelers scored over 50 points before Ben Roethlisberger was the quarterback, each victory was aided by a plethora of turnovers. Three of the five games had five turnovers, while the other two games sported the defense getting eight and nine takeaways. In the two games in which Ben Roethlisberger has scored over 50 points, the Steelers had only two takeaways in each game.

2-0

When Ben Roethlisberger has achieved a perfect QBR of 158.3, he has a record of 2-0 in games played the following week. In 2007, Ben had a perfect rating in Week 16 and was given the game off the following Sunday in preparation for the playoffs. Earlier in the same season, Roethlisberger had a 158.3 rating against Baltimore in Week 8 which he followed up with a 31 –28 victory over the Browns. In 2005, Ben’s perfect rating in Week 1 was followed by a 27-7 win in Houston with a 139.8 QBR. In the two victories immediately after Ben’s perfect rating, he threw four touchdowns to only one interception.

9-3

During Ben Roethlisberger’s career, he has a record of 9-3 in games following the extended break from playing on Thursday the previous week (when he played in both the Thursday game and the game the following week). In those nine victories, the Steelers’s have scored an average of 34.1 points.

5

Not only is the Steelers current win streak five games, but they have also won their last five games following a Thursday night contest. Their last defeat in such a game was against the Miami Dolphins in 2013. The last time the Steelers lost after a Thursday night victory was in 2011 when they fell on Monday Night Football to the San Francisco 49ers. During the current post-Thursday streak, the Steelers have an average margin of victory of 12 points.