'zactly. If you're running steady-state speed, you have lower engine load, which puts you into a less-efficient BSFC point.
However, for p&g, the pulse will not be much different than before. Maybe slightly shorter, due to the lower resistance, but not much. The big bonus is that the glide will go much longer. This biases the total more toward the glide-level consumption, raising the average. Glide-level being idle if you leave it running in N, or zero if you EOC.
You would move from the red zone (best) straight down, based on how much less resistance you have.
