CBSSports.com: Things every NFL should remember in Week 1

[StickyBun]

https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/2021-...ng-week-1/

[Guest]

This is a fascinating article. I'm getting the feeling the Vikings are going to pass a lot more this year. 

Your team should be passing moreYes, this has been the fundamental plea of the NFL analytics movement for a while now. But for as annoyed as you may be with it, it's true. Your team needs to pass more this season. Of the 36 quarterbacks who attempted at least 200 passes last year, only Dwayne Haskins, Sam Darnold, and Carson Wentz averaged less than 5.0 yards per dropback.
Strictly from a yardage perspective for qualifying backs, the Eagles were the only team in the NFL with the ultra-rare dynamic where it was actually more beneficial for them to hand the ball to Miles Sanders (5.3 yards per rush) than have Wentz drop back to pass (4.7 yards per dropback). 

Even the Washington Football Team gained a tick more yards on average on a Dwayne Haskins dropback (4.97 yards per) than an Antonio Gibson run (4.7 yards per). 
Now, if new-age analytics are your thing, you probably know about Expected Points Added (EPA). If you don't, to summarize -- it assigns points to plays relative to the expectation of that given situation based on all-time history. And "all-time history" is a rather large sample size, wouldn't you say?
In 2020, there were eight teams that finished with a negative EPA (a net loss for the offense) on pass plays. Conversely, there were only five teams that posted a positive EPA on their rushing plays. Read that again. 

And don't even get me started on first-down runs. I propose they are abolished from every offensive game-plan in the NFL.
This, from a season ago, illustrates every team's EPA rushing the football and throwing the football on that ever-important first down.
Notice the difference in baselines between rushing and passing plays. It's staggering. Only the Browns -- with that elite offensive line, the duo of Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt, and Kevin Stefanski's time-tested running scheme -- and the Seahawks -- Russell Wilson's 6.2 yards-per-carry average must be considered -- finished the regular season with a positive EPA on first-down rushes! 

[Guest]

There is no Cowboys-Giants or Eagles-Cowboys game on Sunday Night Football for the first time ever.
This is absolutely awesome.

[Guest]

@"MaroonBells" said:
This is a fascinating article. I'm getting the feeling the Vikings are going to pass a lot more this year. 

Your team should be passing moreYes, this has been the fundamental plea of the NFL analytics movement for a while now. But for as annoyed as you may be with it, it's true. Your team needs to pass more this season. Of the 36 quarterbacks who attempted at least 200 passes last year, only Dwayne Haskins, Sam Darnold, and Carson Wentz averaged less than 5.0 yards per dropback.
Strictly from a yardage perspective for qualifying backs, the Eagles were the only team in the NFL with the ultra-rare dynamic where it was actually more beneficial for them to hand the ball to Miles Sanders (5.3 yards per rush) than have Wentz drop back to pass (4.7 yards per dropback). 

Even the Washington Football Team gained a tick more yards on average on a Dwayne Haskins dropback (4.97 yards per) than an Antonio Gibson run (4.7 yards per). 
Now, if new-age analytics are your thing, you probably know about Expected Points Added (EPA). If you don't, to summarize -- it assigns points to plays relative to the expectation of that given situation based on all-time history. And "all-time history" is a rather large sample size, wouldn't you say?
In 2020, there were eight teams that finished with a negative EPA (a net loss for the offense) on pass plays. Conversely, there were only five teams that posted a positive EPA on their rushing plays. Read that again. 

And don't even get me started on first-down runs. I propose they are abolished from every offensive game-plan in the NFL.
This, from a season ago, illustrates every team's EPA rushing the football and throwing the football on that ever-important first down.
Notice the difference in baselines between rushing and passing plays. It's staggering. Only the Browns -- with that elite offensive line, the duo of Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt, and Kevin Stefanski's time-tested running scheme -- and the Seahawks -- Russell Wilson's 6.2 yards-per-carry average must be considered -- finished the regular season with a positive EPA on first-down rushes! 

Agreed. I've always felt this way. Anyone that's ever gone to a football game ever....my first question is how can you not get 4-5 yards in the air anytime you need it at the professional level?? Its such a SHORT unit of measure on a football field. The field is what 50 yards wide? 5 yards is 15 feet which is just ridiculously small on a field that big. THROW THE FOOTBALL. In high school, when I played, it was a cluster and most H.S. teams rely heavily on the run. The passing game is usually kind of a shit show. But in the NFL?