Bob Man checks in with this bit of analysis:
There’s not too much to this, but I am avoiding work by cruising through ESPN.com’s Stats pages.
I’m looking at traditional stats, but when we critique the Colts D, we should keep in mind that our schedule includes the #1, #2, and #3 rushers (twice each) and #4. Holy crap! Sure, part of the reason those guys are that high is our D, but it’s a two-way street. That’s SEVEN games against the top four RBs by yardage.
Of the five top QBs by passer rating, we’ve faced four. And top WRs by yardage: we HAVE #1 and faced three of the remaining top-5.
We’ve faced three of the four top interception guys
Our offense has only faced #1 and #2 of the top-10 Defenses by yards. Same for passing yards (we’re #5 and we face Oakland #9 later). For rushing yard defenses, we’ve faced just #5 and #7, so our anemic rushing stats are actually inflated by inferior competition. yikes!
By points allowed, only one in the top ten, #8 KC.
So when you look at the overall numbers, that looks about right. Our O is working pretty well, considering it has no real run attack. There have been some interceptions, but we move the ball and score. Maybe we should be doing better, given the competition.
But our D has really done pretty well, considering the murderers row of offensive weapons we have faced.
Regarding turnovers, we’re actually better than I expected (but not good). We have faced #1, #3, and #5 in the AFC in terms of T/O differential, and only #1, 8, 9, and 11 in the NFC. So we’re not facing a murderer’s row of defenses of teams with monumental turnover luck/skill.
Our KO and Punt coverage units are a little below avg for the AFC in terms of yards per return, but no TDs is nice to see. Our return games are pretty lousy–par for the course.
Maybe some health next year. Wayne is having a monster year–Hope he lasts a few more.
Note: Bob also wondered how these observations sync with footballoutsiders opponent adjustments. The defense receives a big boost from the opponent adjustment, while the offense has been penalized…that’s in keeping with Bob’s observations.
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