It has felt like passing in the league has gone to a new level since the Indianapolis Colts complained about the contact from the New EnglandPatriots in the mid-aughts. The completion percentage was not good enough for a 25touchdown season. The officials look for illegal contact like highway patrol in a rural section of the interstate for speeding and that's almost a baseline satisfactory number.
After Tom Brady suffered the only serious injury of his career, the world realized that head injuries are just as serious as the phrase "head injury" would suggest. More rule changes led to more points being scored. The inside linebackers needed to be able to cover running backs in the passing game more often than they were able to hit them in the B gap.
The passing game is struggling through the first quarter of the NFL season. Teams putting up big scores are becoming more and more common. Only fourteen games have resulted in a team scoring 30 points or more.
Some teams are working on the offensive side of the ball. The Detroit Lions are the team that is scoring the most points. Their lowest- scoring game of the season is 28 points, and they lead the league in scoring at 35 points per game. The stat that sticks out is D'Angelo Swift leading the NFL in yards per carry at 8.6 The running back averaged 5.7 yards per rush in a 48-45 loss to the Seattle Seahawks despite being injured.
The running game is important to the success of the offense. Three of the five teams with the best expected points added are in the top five in yards per carry. Six of the top 10 teams are also among the top 10 in Run DVOA. The run game that had been window dressing for a decade is now important. The defensive coaches had to slow down the ultimate passing attack.
After the defensive coaches had adjusted, Patrick forced them to change. Extra defensive backs were put out, but not always deep in coverage. Too few bodies are left to stop the run and not enough people are in coverage. After three seasons of putting the ball in the air, an adjustment was made.
You heard about the two-high safety looks that teams decided to use against the Kansas City Chiefs in 2021. The team's collapse in the second half of a conference championship loss against the CincinnatiBengals resulted in the worst season for quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
After success in the NFL, trends begin. The two-high looks are doing well. Pass plays have been less efficient in the past. Defenses want offenses to work the field chunk by chunk and hope for the best. It is the best they can do against the pass game.
It was shown by the New EnglandPatriots for a long time. A three-yard completion can turn into seven in a few seconds if all skill position players are involved.
But what if the opposing quarterback isn't Tom Brady. The safeties are kept back because the offense doesn't want to run the football. Yes, a running back can average four-plus yards per carry, but is that going to be enough for the offensive coordinators?
The game has been played in the past 20 years. It might be difficult to get to 20 points, but your team has the football. With only seven players in the box, you won't often record a 20-plus yard play, but it's consistent positive yards. The offensive linemen get to indulge in the reason why they played football in the first place because the linebackers are small. They don't have to worry about catching freak defensive athletes in the chest. They are able to bring the pain.
Football is meant to be played in a certain way, but for now, let's enjoy it. Running the football in the alley and creating some seals.
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