bclemms
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It's not about how many yards you gain, it's not about how many yards you allow, it's this grand combination of efficiency.
You can look at many stats that total up efficiency numbers. Stuff like turnovers, 3rd down efficiency, yards per carry, yards per pass attempt, penalties, red zone numbers, etc.
You don't need a lot of yards if you don't turn the ball over, score TD's when you get in the redzone and convert a lot of 3rd downs. It means when your offense is getting the ball, they are turning those possessions into points. Two teams can average 24 points per game on offense and look equal in the scoring offense rankings. What those don't show is how many plays each team runs. A Chip Kelly offense that scores 24 points per game is going to lose a lot of games while a Pete Carroll offense that scores 24 points per game will win a lot. The difference is because of tempo and ball control philosophy. The Chip Kelly offense will still be scoring 24 points per game but they are doing it in 80 plays where the Carroll offense may do it averaging 50 plays which means one defense is having to defend a lot more plays than the other. Hence the point per play stat.
The best single measurement on an offense or defenses success I've ever seen is points per play and points per play allowed. This year we were second in the league in points per play. Our offense really was a machine. We did just about everything right. We led the league in 3rd down efficiency, we were one of the best in the league in the redzone and we scored a lot of points in the final two minutes of halves. We were also second in the NFL in points per play. All the other teams in the top 5 in points per play stat won their division and includes the #1 seeds from both Conferences. Not only were the Saints the only team that didn't win their division but they managed to finish with a losing record. The other 4 teams combined for 48 wins.
Defense, the same thing applies. Limit opponents on third down and in the redzone while forcing a couple turnovers a game and they'll be pretty good even if they aren't very good everywhere else.
So how did the defense stack up after being dead last in the NFL last season in points per play allowed? Well, we were dead last in the NFL in points per play allowed again this season. The bottom 5 teams in points per play allowed all finished dead last in their division with the Saints being the only exception. The other 4 teams combined for 13 wins.
The mother of all stats is the point per play differential. It takes the points per play for the offense and subtracts the points per play for the defense and the sum of the two is the point per play differential. Teams that have values around 0 usually finish around .500, teams that finish with a +.5 or better make the playoffs at a very high percentage. Teams that finish with a -.5 or worse end up with a top 10 pick. This year, the Saints finished -.026, 10th worst in the NFL and it got us the 11th pick in the draft. The top 3 teams? Patriots, Falcons and Cowboys.
You combined the worst defense in the NFL with some of the worst special teams play in the NFL and the stage is set for a losing season. Every single time. We have to get better on defense. We've finished dead last both of the last two seasons. We've finished bottom 5 3 straight seasons. We can even afford to get worse on offense while improving on special teams and defense and end up a much better football team.
https://www.sportingcharts.com/nfl/stats/points-per-play-differential/2016/
The good news, is with our offense it doesn't take much. We have a lot of players coming back from injury and with just a little improvement on defense and special teams and this team can go a long way. The bad news? We've been saying this 3 straight seasons.
You can look at many stats that total up efficiency numbers. Stuff like turnovers, 3rd down efficiency, yards per carry, yards per pass attempt, penalties, red zone numbers, etc.
You don't need a lot of yards if you don't turn the ball over, score TD's when you get in the redzone and convert a lot of 3rd downs. It means when your offense is getting the ball, they are turning those possessions into points. Two teams can average 24 points per game on offense and look equal in the scoring offense rankings. What those don't show is how many plays each team runs. A Chip Kelly offense that scores 24 points per game is going to lose a lot of games while a Pete Carroll offense that scores 24 points per game will win a lot. The difference is because of tempo and ball control philosophy. The Chip Kelly offense will still be scoring 24 points per game but they are doing it in 80 plays where the Carroll offense may do it averaging 50 plays which means one defense is having to defend a lot more plays than the other. Hence the point per play stat.
The best single measurement on an offense or defenses success I've ever seen is points per play and points per play allowed. This year we were second in the league in points per play. Our offense really was a machine. We did just about everything right. We led the league in 3rd down efficiency, we were one of the best in the league in the redzone and we scored a lot of points in the final two minutes of halves. We were also second in the NFL in points per play. All the other teams in the top 5 in points per play stat won their division and includes the #1 seeds from both Conferences. Not only were the Saints the only team that didn't win their division but they managed to finish with a losing record. The other 4 teams combined for 48 wins.
Defense, the same thing applies. Limit opponents on third down and in the redzone while forcing a couple turnovers a game and they'll be pretty good even if they aren't very good everywhere else.
So how did the defense stack up after being dead last in the NFL last season in points per play allowed? Well, we were dead last in the NFL in points per play allowed again this season. The bottom 5 teams in points per play allowed all finished dead last in their division with the Saints being the only exception. The other 4 teams combined for 13 wins.
The mother of all stats is the point per play differential. It takes the points per play for the offense and subtracts the points per play for the defense and the sum of the two is the point per play differential. Teams that have values around 0 usually finish around .500, teams that finish with a +.5 or better make the playoffs at a very high percentage. Teams that finish with a -.5 or worse end up with a top 10 pick. This year, the Saints finished -.026, 10th worst in the NFL and it got us the 11th pick in the draft. The top 3 teams? Patriots, Falcons and Cowboys.
You combined the worst defense in the NFL with some of the worst special teams play in the NFL and the stage is set for a losing season. Every single time. We have to get better on defense. We've finished dead last both of the last two seasons. We've finished bottom 5 3 straight seasons. We can even afford to get worse on offense while improving on special teams and defense and end up a much better football team.
https://www.sportingcharts.com/nfl/stats/points-per-play-differential/2016/
The good news, is with our offense it doesn't take much. We have a lot of players coming back from injury and with just a little improvement on defense and special teams and this team can go a long way. The bad news? We've been saying this 3 straight seasons.