The Worksheet, a comprehensive fantasy football preview by Rich Hribar, breaks down everything you need to know about the Week 7 matchup between the Rams and Steelers.
Find a breakdown of every Week 7 NFL game in our Worksheet Hub.
| Pittsburgh | Rank | @ | LA Rams | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.0 | Spread | -3.0 | ||
| 20.0 | Implied Total | 23.0 | ||
| 15.8 | 30 | Points/Gm | 23.0 | 12 |
| 22.0 | 20 | Points All./Gm | 19.5 | 11 |
| 60.3 | 28 | Plays/Gm | 62.7 | 10 |
| 67.7 | 32 | Opp. Plays/Gm | 69.7 | 16 |
| 4.5 | 27 | Off. Yards/Play | 5.6 | 7 |
| 5.6 | 24 | Def. Yards/Play | 5.2 | 18 |
| 39.66% | 25 | Rush% | 38.64% | 28 |
| 60.34% | 8 | Pass% | 61.36% | 5 |
| 43.14% | 16 | Opp. Rush % | 44.13% | 18 |
| 56.86% | 17 | Opp. Pass % | 55.87% | 15 |
- Pittsburgh has had 59.3% of their set of downs reach third down, the highest rate in the league. The league average is 47.7%.
- The Steelers have punted on a league-high 50.0% of their possessions.
- The Steelers have led for 23.4% of their offensive snaps, the lowest rate for any team with a winning record.
- 22.5% of Pittsburgh passing plays have resulted in a first down or touchdown, the lowest rate in the league.
- 33.7% of the Rams' passing plays have resulted in a first down or touchdown, sixth in the league.
- The Rams are averaging a first down or touchdown every 3.22 plays on offense, seventh in the league.
- The Steelers are averaging a first down or touchdown every 4.61 plays, last in the NFL.
- 25.0% of the Pittsburgh rushing attempts have failed to gain yardage, the highest rate in the league.
- Pittsburgh is averaging 5.6 sacks plus takeaways per game on defense, third in the league.
Trust = spike production for that player
Quarterback
Matthew Stafford: Stafford has lived as a high-end QB2 the past few weeks, closing out the past three games as QB16, QB14, and QB15.
He is coming off a season-high 9.4 yards per pass attempt against the Cardinals, a spot that I believed he would smash, but underestimated that the Rams would just not have to throw to win the game.
The Rams dropped back on a season-low 47.3% of their snaps and just 31.4% of their plays in the second half.
Stafford had just 11 dropbacks and nine pass attempts in the second half as the Rams ran all over the Cardinals.
Given the state of their backfield this week, Stafford should be pressed to throw here and is back in that higher-end QB2 area for fantasy.
This is a far more aggressive defense, however, so keeping Stafford clean will be key.
The Steelers are 11th in the NFL in terms of pressure rate (37.4%) and ninth in sack rate (8.5%).
When Stafford has been kept clean, he is averaging 8.0 yards per pass attempt (10th) with a 71.2% completion rate (18th).
When pressured, he has completed just 39.4% of his passes (30th) for 6.1 Y/A (16th) with just one touchdown pass.
When the Steelers do get pressure, they have been excellent. When creating pressure, Pittsburgh has allowed a 37.9% completion rate (third) for 5.2 Y/A (11th) with one touchdown and three interceptions for a 39.6 rating (third).
When they have not pressured the passer, the Steelers are allowing 8.3 Y/A (29th) with seven passing touchdowns and two interceptions for a 106.4 rating (27th).
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