Cheat Sheet: Steelers at Colts

HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN

• TV coverage: Broadcast nationally on the NFL Network (KDKA-TV locally in Pittsburgh).
• Steelers Radio Network - Game coverage begins at 4:30 p.m. ET; Pregame programming begins at 12:15 p.m.; Postgame coverage starts immediately following the game.
• Don't miss a minute of the action... check out all of the ways that you can watch, listen and follow along on gameday. Click here >>>

INJURY UPDATE

The Steelers will travel to Indianapolis to take on the Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium.
Check out the most updated Injury Report: Click here >>>

SERIES HISTORY

Beginning in 1950, these two franchises have met 33 times, but only two of those games took place before 1968. The Colts and Steelers split their first four meetings, but the Steelers are 25-4 since, and overall Pittsburgh leads this series 27-6. Twelve of the games have been the Steelers against the Baltimore Colts. The Colts won just three of those dozen matchups. The Colts have won just two games against Pittsburgh in the 2000s, none in the 1990s, one in the '80s, and two in the '70s. The Steelers are currently on an eight-game winning streak against Indianapolis and have won five in a row in Indianapolis. The Colts and Steelers have met five times in the postseason with Pittsburgh undefeated in those playoff battles.

MATCHUP OVERVIEW

• The Steelers are 3-2 on the road and the Colts are just 2-4 in Indianapolis. The Colts have won four of their last five games. They have been outscored by 16 points in 2023 and over the past five games, Indianapolis only outscored its opponents by eight points.
• The Colts have five losses in games in which they have scored 20-plus points, which is the most in the league this season. They have scored 23.8 points on average in their losses this season, also the highest in the NFL.
• Pittsburgh's turnover differential sits at plus-10. Only the 49ers are better. The Colts are plus-1. Both teams have 21 takeaways, which is near the top of the league. Both have 13 interceptions and 8 fumble recoveries. Indianapolis' opponents have fumbled 21 times, but the Colts have only recovered 38% of those opportunities. However, the Colts have turned the ball over 20 times compared to just 11 by the Steelers, which is lowest in the NFL.
• Pittsburgh (28:58) and Indianapolis (28:35) are at the bottom of the league in time of possession. However, over their past three games, the Steelers are holding the ball for 33:26 compared to 28:54 from the Colts.
• The Steelers defense (7.2) is surrendering a full yard more per pass attempt than Pittsburgh's offense (6.2) is producing, and the Steelers' opponents average 47.1 more passing yards per game and have thrown eight more touchdown passes.
• Pittsburgh and Indianapolis both attempt deep passes 10 percent of their attempts. Only seven passing attacks are less.
• The Colts opponents average 68.4 plays run per game, the most in the NFL. Pittsburgh's opponents average 64.8, which is more than all but seven teams including Indianapolis.
• On a per-snap basis, the Steelers defense is the oldest in the NFL with an average age of 28.2, while their offense is the second-youngest at 26.1. The Colts offense is the next youngest. Overall, Pittsburgh is the 11^th-oldest team in the league per snap at 27.2, while the Colts are 27^th with an average age of 26.3.
• Indianapolis has five touchdowns this year on either defense or special teams. That is second-most in the league.
• Per EPA, including this upcoming game, only three teams have an easier schedule the rest of the way than Indianapolis.

WHEN PITTSBURGH HAS THE BALL

• The Steelers' 4.9 yards per play produced is only ahead of Las Vegas and Arizona, but over the past three games, Pittsburgh is producing 5.2 yards per offensive snap. The Colts allow 5.2 for the season, but 5.5 yards per play over their past three games. Indianapolis allowed 6.8 yards per play last week to the Bengals.
• Only three defenses allow more points per game than the Colts this season.
• The Steelers are in 11 Personnel (1 RB/1 TE) 75.6% of their snaps, which is the fifth-highest rate in the league. The Colts defense is facing 12 Personnel (1 RB/2 TE) 21.9% of their snaps, the seventh-highest rate in the NFL.
• Pittsburgh is throwing the ball 55.6% of its snaps. Only eight offenses throw it a lower percentage. And they are at 52% over their past three games. Only four defenses are seeing a higher percentage of run plays than Indianapolis'.
• Opposing passers are getting the ball out of their hands in 2.49 seconds against the Colts. Just two defenses face a quicker time to throw. Jake Browning threw for 275 yards against Indianapolis last week despite leaving the game briefly with an injury. His average time to throw was 2.52 seconds.
• This season, when Trubisky gets the ball out of his hands in 2.5 second or less, his stat line is as follows: 35 of 50 for 315 yards with three touchdowns and zero interceptions. When he holds the ball for over 2.5 seconds, Trubisky has completed 16 of 34 for 148 yards with zero touchdowns and three interceptions.
• Against the Patriots, George Pickens and Diontae Johnson were targeted a combined 13 times, catching eight passes for 76 yards.
• Johnson was on the field for over two-thirds of the Steelers running plays between Week 8 and 13 when he returned from injury. Against New England, that fell to 25%.
• Pickens has aligned on the perimeter on 84.9% of his snaps. Of all receivers with at least 50 targets, that is the fifth-highest percentage in the league. Johnson isn't far behind at 80.3%, which is the 12^th-highest rate. The Colts allow 121.5 yards per game to receivers aligned outside, 10th-most in the league.
• Johnson has finished with 57 or fewer yards in five-straight games. Pickens has seen six or fewer targets and is averaging 38.1 receiving yards in his last seven games.
• In Cincinnati three weeks ago, Pat Freiermuth was targeted 11 times, catching nine of them for 120 yards. In his other seven games combined he has 26 targets, 15 catches and 107 yards. Freiermuth did run a route on 83.3% of the team's dropbacks last week, his highest rate since Week 2.
• Indianapolis didn't record a sack last week. However, not only do the Colts have 13 different defensive players with at least one sack this season, they have four with over five: Samson Ebukam (8), Kwity Paye (7.5), Dayo Odeyingbo (6.5) and DeForest Bucker (5.5). Only one other team has four players with five or more sacks. The Colts are also recording a sack on 8.4% of opposing dropbacks. Only three defenses are better. However, the Steelers have only given up 27 sacks this season, which is eighth-best in the league.
• The Colts gave up 125 receiving yards to running backs against Cincinnati last week, including a 54-yard touchdown to Chase Brown.
• Against the Patriots, Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren combined for 19 carries for 40 rushing yards. Trubisky led the team with 30 rushing yards. For the season, Harris leads the Steelers with 690 rushing yards on 171 carries, but Warren is right behind him with 612 yards on the ground on his 109 carries. No one else on the Steelers roster has more than 55 rushing yards.
• Last week, the Steelers ran seven plays with both Harris and Warren on the field together. They hadn't used it more than twice in a game since Week 7.
• Harris has yet to receive a 60% snap share in any game this season, while Warren has gotten a 50% snap share in just two games. The Lions are the only other team in the league with two running backs with over 800 yards from scrimmage. Since Week 9, only Christian McCaffrey and Rachaad White have more yards from scrimmage among running backs than Warren. Harris has not had a game this season with 20-plus carries after having 13 such games during his first two seasons in the NFL.
• Over their past seven games, the Colts have given up 1,029 rushing yards, which is 147 per game. For the season, only five defenses are worse on an EPA per rush standpoint. Only the Panthers have allowed more rushing touchdown this year than Indianapolis. When these teams met in Week 12 of last year, the Steelers rushed for 172 yards. Since Week 7, the Steelers are averaging 133 rushing yards per game, fifth-most over that time.
• Indianapolis is giving up the fifth-most rushing yards per game (106.4) to running backs, as well as the fifth-most receiving yards (42.7). Joe Mixon and Chase Brown combined for 230 yards last week.
• The Colts defense has played 919 snaps this season. Julian Blackmon hasn't missed a single snap. Kenny Moore II has missed just six. Rodney Thomas II has played 860 and Zaire Franklin has played 839. DeForest Buckner (655) is the only other defensive player to play more than 566.
• Franklin has eight games this year with 12-plus tackles, most in the NFL.
• Per EPA, only the Chargers have faced a more difficult slate of defenses this season than Pittsburgh.

WHEN INDIANAPOLIS HAS THE BALL

• Indianapolis averages 5.2 yards per play for the season, as well as over their past three games. The Steelers give up 5.3 for the season and 5.1 over their past three.
• Over their past three games, the Colts are throwing the ball 65.7% of their offensive snaps. Only the Chargers, Jets and Raiders are throwing it a higher percentage over their last three games.
• The Colts are in 11 Personnel (1 RB/1 TE) 79.3% of their snaps, which is the third-highest rate in the league. The Steelers defense is facing 11 Personnel for just 53.8% of their snaps. Only two defenses see 11 Personnel a lower percentage.
• Only one defense has been in its nickel package with five defensive backs on the field a lower percentage than Pittsburgh, which has been in nickel for 37.2% of the time.
• Just two defenses allow a lower completion percentage than the Steelers.
• Opposing passers are getting the ball out of their hands in 2.5 seconds against the Steelers. Just four defenses face a quicker time to throw.
• The Colts have had their quarterbacks under center for just 6.4% of their snaps, the second-lowest percentage in the league.
• Gardner Minshew has attempted at least 39 passes in three-straight games and in six game total this season despite Anthony Richardson starting four games. For his career, Minshew is 11-10 as a starting quarterback.
• Pittman averages 9.8 targets per game this season and has gotten 11 or more in four-straight games. Over this four-game stretch, Pittman has 37 catches and 391 receiving yards. He now has eight or more catches in six-straight games, the longest streak in the NFL, and 10 of 13 games this season. Keenan Allen is the only player in the NFL with more targets than Pittman.
• Joey Porter Jr. has shadowed DeAndre Hopkins, Amari Cooper, Ja'Marr Chase and Marquise Brown since Week 9 on 100 out of a possible 124 routes run, including 91 of 97 perimeter and nine of 27 from the slot. When facing Porter, Hopkins was held to four catches for 60 yards on 11 targets, while Cooper had four catches for 34 yards on nine targets. Chase caught four passes for 81 yards on four targets, and Brown didn't catch a pass on his two targets when shadowed by Porter. Porter has played 92.5% of the Steelers' defensive snaps since the Week 6 bye compared to 22.6% during the first five games of the season.
• Josh Downs has been targeted five or fewer times in four of his last five games.
• Alec Pierce's 10.1% target rate is only ahead of Van Jefferson amongst all wide receivers who have run at least 300 routes.
• The Colts had four tight ends play between 17 and 24 snaps last week. Indianapolis tight ends have caught a league-low 57.3% of their targets this season. Kylen Granson is the only Colts tight end to hit 50 receiving yards in a game in 2023.
• The Steelers are allowing 92.6 yards per game to receivers aligned in the slot, fourth-most in the league and 10.3 yards per target (31^st) to slot receivers.
• 11 different Steelers defenders have an interception this season, but no one has more than two.
• TJ Watt has at least half a sack in six of his last seven games and is currently second behind Khalil Mack (15) in the NFL with 14 sacks for the season. The Steelers are 36-16-1 and allow 19.6 points per game with Watt in the lineup since 2020. They are 1-9 and allow 26.6 points per game without Watt since 2020.
• Minshew has been blitzed on 36.6% of his dropbacks, which is second-most in the league. The Steelers defense is eighth in blitz rate at 34.5%.
• Zack Moss played 54 of a possible 64 offensive snaps last week. In that game, he was stuffed for no gain on three carries and took a loss on three more. He had just three carries in that game over three yards. Trey Sermon was the only other Colts running back with a carry against Cincinnati. Moss has averaged 2.7 yards per carry or less in three of his last four games. He has been the starter the past two weeks and has generated just 79 rushing yards on 32 carries during that time with Jonathan Taylor sidelined. In these past two games, Moss has gotten 86.4% of the backfield touches and in each the five games this season he has played without Taylor, he's received 80% or more of the backfield touches. Moss has been contacted behind the line of scrimmage on 52% of his carries this year, the third highest rate in the league.
• The Colts could only muster 46 rushing yards last week and just 2.6 yards per carry.
• Only five defenses have allowed fewer rushing touchdowns (8) this season than Pittsburgh.
• With Cameron Heyward on the field this season, Pittsburgh allows 3.5 yards per carry and just 5.5% of the rushing attempts have gone for 10-plus yards. When Heyward is off the field, those numbers spike to 4.5 yards per carry and 11%.
• Since their Week 11 bye, Indianapolis is converting just 22.2% of its third downs. That is worst in the league during that stretch.

SPECIAL TEAMS

• Last week was Miles Killebrew's fourth punt block in less than three full seasons with the Steelers. The Colts blocked two punts in Tennessee in Week 13.
• There have only been a total of five missed field goals in games involving the Steelers this year. 52 field goals have been attempted. Indianapolis' Matt Gay has missed five field goals this season and there have been a total of 10 missed field goal attempts in Colts games in 2023.
• Only the Bears have generated less EPA on punts and kickoffs this season than Pittsburgh, but only the Bengals and Eagles have generated more EPA on punt and kickoff returns than the Steelers.

Most Memorable Moment

AFC Divisional Playoffs, RCA Dome, Jan. 15, 2006: Steelers 21, Colts 18

This game had one of the most memorable moments in the Steelers' great history when Ben Roethlisberger tackled Nick Harper to save the game and advance Pittsburgh to the AFC Championship. The usually ultra-reliable Jerome Bettis, one of the best goal-line runners in the history of the game, fumbled at the goal line. The ball was recovered by Harper, who had all sorts of open space to win this game in heroic fashion for Indianapolis. But, of course, that isn't what transpired thanks to Roethlisberger. Even after that, Indianapolis still could have tied the game, but Mike Vanderjagt missed a 46-yard field goal. The Colts were 14-2 that year and had home-field advantage in the AFC playoff bracket, but it was Pittsburgh that won the next two games, including the Super Bowl. That was Bettis' first fumble of the season.

KEY MATCHUPS

Colts WR Michael Pittman Jr. vs. Steelers CB Joey Porter Jr. - Both these exciting players had fathers with very successful NFL careers. Pittman is clearly the focal point of Indianapolis' passing game and is having a tremendous season. The Steelers have made a habit of putting Porter on the opponent's top receiver, which in this case is obviously Pittman. This could be a classic battle between two NFL legacies.

Steelers Interior Offensive Line vs. Colts DE DeForest Buckner - Buckner has had a great career, first in San Francisco and now with the Colts. He has rare length that he uses extremely well and can align all over the defensive front, but mainly on the interior. The Steelers have an excellent guard pairing, but center hasn't been a position of strength. Particularly on throwing downs, look for Indianapolis to isolate Buckner on center Mason Cole, but more often than not, containing Buckner will fall on Pittsburgh's guards. Buckner's 36 quarterback hits since 2022 is the fifth-most in the league during that time.