2025
Week 3 · Sunday 1:00 PM ET · Gillette Stadium
Steelers offensevsPatriots defense
Season numbers through Week 22: 18 games for Steelers, 21 for Patriots. Ranks are out of 32; #1 is the best offense or the stingiest defense.
The Steelers won 21–14; their low point was 36% at Q4 7:48. The game turned for good at Q4 7:48: D.Maye sacked at PIT 39 for -6 yards (N.Herbig). FUMBLES (N.Herbig) [N.Herbig], touched at PIT 37, RECOVERED by PIT-T.Watt at PIT 38. T.Watt to… (36% → 62%).
The plays that swung it
- 1Q4 7:48NED.Maye sacked at PIT 39 for -6 yards (N.Herbig). FUMBLES (N.Herbig) [N.Herbig], touched at PIT 37, RECOVERED by PIT-T.Watt at PIT 38. T.Watt to…turning point36% → 62%
- 2Q3 13:17NER.Stevenson right guard to PIT 1 for 1 yard (Ca.Heyward). FUMBLES (Ca.Heyward), touched at PIT 0, RECOVERED by PIT-P.Wilson at PIT -1. Touchback.61% → 80%
- 3Q4 15:00NED.Maye pass short middle to H.Henry for 16 yards, TOUCHDOWN.25% → 41%
- 4Q3 13:46PITA.Rodgers pass short left intended for C.Austin INTERCEPTED by R.Spillane [K.Chaisson] at PIT 48. R.Spillane pushed ob at PIT 11 for 37 yards…21% → 36%
- 5Q4 2:20PITA.Rodgers pass deep left to C.Austin for 17 yards, TOUCHDOWN.76% → 90%
Win probability is nflverse's model, which starts from the betting line and updates before every snap with the score, the clock, down, distance, field position and timeouts. A swing is the change in one team's chance across a play, in percentage points. Each play is tagged with the team that had the ball; the bar names the team it helped. The turning point is the play after which the winner never fell to 50% again.
J.Smith led the Steelers at +3.5 EPA (3 catches for 23). H.Henry led the Patriots at +9.2 EPA (8 catches for 90).
Steelers
| Passing | C/A | Yds | TD | INT | Sk | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A.Rodgers100% | 16/23 | 139 | 2 | 1 | +0.2 |
| Rushing | Car | Share | Yds | TD | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| J.Warren80% | 18 | 69% | 47 | -2.7 | |
| A.Rodgers100% | 4 | 15% | 1 | -0.4 | |
| K.Gainwell26% | 4 | 15% | 16 | 1 | +0.5 |
| Receiving | Tgt | Share | Rec | Yds | TD | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| J.Warren80% | 6 | 27% | 5 | 34 | -0.6 | |
| C.III72% | 5 | 23% | 3 | 34 | 1 | -2.5 |
| D.Metcalf89% | 4 | 18% | 3 | 32 | 1 | +2.6 |
| J.Smith83% | 3 | 14% | 3 | 23 | +3.5 | |
| P.Freiermuth70% | 3 | 14% | 1 | 6 | -3.0 | |
| K.Gainwell26% | 1 | 5% | 1 | 10 | +0.7 |
Defense T.Watt 2 sacks, B.Echols 1 INT, C.Heyward 1 sack, N.Herbig 1 sack
Patriots
| Passing | C/A | Yds | TD | INT | Sk | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| D.Maye100% | 28/37 | 268 | 2 | 1 | 5 | +1.4 |
| Rushing | Car | Share | Yds | TD | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| T.Henderson46% | 11 | 38% | 28 | -0.5 | |
| A.Gibson26% | 7 | 24% | 28 | -5.1 | |
| D.Maye100% | 7 | 24% | 45 | +2.2 | |
| R.Stevenson36% | 4 | 14% | 18 | -9.2 |
| Receiving | Tgt | Share | Rec | Yds | TD | EPA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| H.Henry81% | 11 | 31% | 8 | 90 | 2 | +9.2 |
| D.Douglas39% | 5 | 14% | 2 | 7 | -3.2 | |
| M.Hollins62% | 4 | 11% | 4 | 27 | +1.7 | |
| S.Diggs53% | 3 | 8% | 3 | 23 | +0.8 | |
| A.Hooper65% | 3 | 8% | 2 | 28 | +1.6 | |
| R.Stevenson36% | 3 | 8% | 3 | 38 | +2.9 | |
| K.Boutte76% | 3 | 8% | 2 | 28 | -1.7 | |
| T.Henderson46% | 3 | 8% | 3 | 19 | +0.3 | |
| K.Williams12% | 1 | 3% | 1 | 8 | +0.9 |
Defense R.Spillane 1 INT
Each player's line for this game from nflverse's weekly stats; the percentage beside his name is his share of the offense's snaps. Share is his part of the team's carries or targets in this game. Defense lists sacks and interceptions; kicking lists field goals.
Tight ends feast
Patriots give up 7.5 targets a game to tight ends (20th), against a league average of 7.3. Steelers' tight ends produce 8.9 (4th).
Deep middle is open
Patriots are worst against deep middle throws, allowing +0.32 EPA per attempt. Steelers send 3% of their throws there. That is a small part of their offense so far.
Wideouts get blanketed
Patriots give up 117 yards a game to wide receivers (4th), against a league average of 140. Steelers' wide receivers produce 101 (29th).
Success rate
Call this one even. Steelers succeed on 43% of plays (19th) against a defense that allows 42% (11th).
The Patriots lead the series 15–5 since 1999 (they first met in 2001). Sep 20, 2026, at Gillette Stadium: the Patriots won 20–3. Drake Maye started at quarterback for the Patriots and Aaron Rodgers for the Steelers; Mike Vrabel and Mike McCarthy coached.
The last 5
| 2026 · Wk 2 | PIT 3 at NE 20 |
| 2025 · Wk 3 | PIT 21 at NE 14 |
| 2023 · Wk 14 | NE 21 at PIT 18 |
| 2022 · Wk 2 | NE 17 at PIT 14 |
| 2019 · Wk 1 | PIT 3 at NE 33 |
2025 records
| Steelers | Patriots | |
|---|---|---|
| Overall | 10–7 | 14–3 |
| Division | 4–2 | 5–1 |
| Conference | 8–4 | 9–3 |
| Other conference | 2–3 | 5–0 |
| Home | 6–3 | 6–3 |
| Away | 4–4 | 8–0 |
| Last 5 | WWWLW | WLWWW |
| Streak | Won 1 | Won 3 |
| Points a game | 23.4 – 22.8 | 28.8 – 18.8 |
Every meeting since 1999, regular season and playoffs, from nflverse's game list, which starts in 1999; the all-time series goes back further. Franchises that moved count as one team (the Raiders, Chargers and Rams). Home and away are from the Steelers' side. Records are this regular season.
| Stat | Favors PIT · Favors NE | NFL avg | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | ||||
| EPA per play | 0.00#18 | -0.09#5 | +0.01 | |
| Success rate | 43%#19 | 42%#11 | 44% | |
| Yards per play | 5.2#21 | 4.9#6 | 5.4 | |
| Explosive play rate | 9%#23 | 8%#6 | 10% | |
| Passing | ||||
| Pass EPA per dropback | -0.01#21 | -0.12#6 | +0.01 | |
| Sack rate | 6%#12 | 7%#16 | 7% | |
| Running | ||||
| Run EPA per carry | 0.00#7 | -0.09#12 | -0.05 | |
| Yards per carry | 4.4#12 | 3.9#8 | 4.3 | |
| Money downs | ||||
| 3rd down conversion | 40%#17 | 36%#7 | 40% | |
| Red zone TD rate | 59%#15 | 55%#8 | 59% | |
| Targets by position | ||||
| WR yards per game | 101#29 | 117#4 | 140 | |
| TE yards per game | 62#7 | 55#20 | 53 | |
| TE targets per game | 8.9#4 | 7.5#20 | 7.3 | |
| RB receiving yards per game | 48#3 | 29#11 | 32 | |
Steelers: EPA per throw
Patriots: EPA allowed per throw
Green gains more than expected, red loses value. Cells with fewer than 5 throws are grayed out.