The Cleveland Browns felt like a bad matchup for Aaron Rodgers. The Pittsburgh Steelers utilize their wide receivers in the passing game less than any team in football, in part because they struggle to get open against press-man coverage and Rodgers gets the football out in 2.0 seconds on average, the 10th-fastest rate among all quarterbacks this season, per Pro Football Reference.
Entering Sunday’s Week 8 matchup in Pittsburgh, the Steelers held the NFL’s lowest success rate on passing plays targeting wide receivers, according to Sharp Football Analysis. The Browns, meanwhile, entered the week running the league’s highest rate of man-to-man coverage.
But as Rodgers alluded to after Sunday's game, that also made the Browns’ defense predictable.
Rodgers barely even looked at his wide receivers during Sunday’s 27-6 win over Cleveland. Mike McCarthy and company schemed up some favorable matchups with their tight ends, and Rodgers picked his spots.
The Browns, as a result, found themselves chasing Steelers ball carriers for four quarters instead of playing their usual suffocating style on defense.
“We always feel good about our tight ends and our backs and try to get them the ball in space,” Rodgers said, “especially when there’s gonna be some man-match coverage where we like the matchups inside.”
Aaron Rodgers had all the answers for the Browns in the Week 8 rematch
Pitchers rarely get a chance to take a third trip through an opposing team's batting order these days in Major League Baseball. There are enough analytics out there to prove the pitcher becomes less effective after hitters have faced him multiple times.
In this example, Rodgers was the batter, not the pitcher.
The Steelers had the answers to the test in this one. They struggled to handle Cleveland’s tough man coverage in the first meeting, back in Week 4, when Rodgers was sacked five times, barely completed 55% of his attempts, and threw two interceptions. The Browns played man defense on an almost disrespectful 73% of Rodgers’ dropbacks in that game, according to Next Gen Stats, and the Steelers didn’t find a rhythm until late in the game.
They certainly weren’t fooled by Cleveland’s man coverage looks in Sunday’s rematch. The Steelers controlled the line of scrimmage — Rodgers was only sacked once in this game — and rushed for a mind-boggling 200 yards. Rodgers’ final stat line wasn’t pretty: 13-of-25 for 175 yards, no touchdowns, and an interception.
But 73.7% of his passing yards went to tight ends Pat Freiermuth and Darnell Washington. Pittsburgh’s tight ends combined for 73 yards after the catch, an area the Steelers led the league in entering the game.
“When we played up there in Cleveland we had a bunch of sacks, didn't run it super efficiently,” Rodgers said. “But I thought from the first go we had a good mindset, we protected well, we opened up some holes, and Jaylen and Rico ran well. … Definitely love those boys up front — and they dominated the line of scrimmage.”
The Browns have an inexperienced coaching staff across the board, and Sunday’s game could serve as a learning experience. The Steelers had a good plan for what they expected the Browns to do, and Cleveland couldn’t get the game-swinging sacks and turnovers it needed to pull off a huge upset on the road.
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