FOOTBALL OUTSIDERS: Football analysis and NFL stats for the Moneyball era - Authors of Pro Football Prospectus 2006 and 2005

Links (98)

A Look At the Offensive--The Line
Published 1/11/2007 by TBird41 at The Ragnarok
... ) while the 2006 line was above average (14th according to FO,

What the deuce happened?! 2006 Offensive Line Review
Published 1/18/2007 by Skin Patrol at Hogs Haven: Front Page Posts
... for in depth statistical analyses. And according to them this O-Line excelled against the pass though was mediocre against the run.

Super Bowl Analysis- Colts O vs. Bears D
Published 1/31/2007 by WCG at Windy City Gridiron: Front Page Posts
... For the year the Colts pass rush has been well below average. It's easy to look at their 25 sacks and conclude that, but one must also consider the strength of their schedule--with an adjusted sack rate of 6.2% the average Colts opponents' offensive line would rank roughly 18thin the league--and the fact that Colts opponents frequently had to play from behind. Colts' opponents ran the second most pass plays in the league, 415, meaning the Colts' defense recorded a sack on just 6% of passing plays. Ouch, but teams in a Tampa 2 rarely blitz and not every time a Qb is pressured does it record a sack. So it's important to note that the Colts did pick 15 passes, though, again, on 415 passes. For the year the Colts pass rush is at least well below average and likely one of the worst in the league.

Mid-Week Ramblings
Published 2/21/2007 by Phinatic <info@thephinsider.com> at The Phinsider: Front Page Posts
... The Football Outsiders do a very good analysis of offensive lines, so we'll take a look at that.  According to their Adjusted Line Yards figure, a figure that tries to quantify the performance of the offensive line, the Cardinals did not fare very well when running behind Davis.  When running to the left end, the Cardinals averaged 4.08 ALY, ranking them 17th in the league.  When running off left tackle, they averaged just 3.96 ALY, ranking just 26th in the league.  In comparison, the Dolphins ranked 25th running to the left end and 10th running off left tackle.

Some Thoughts on the Thomas Jones Trade
Published 3/6/2007 by Bassett at thejetsblog.com
... How different is the offensive line? The Bears sent two Offensive Lineman (replacements) to the Pro Bowl in Olin Kreutz (C) and Ruben Brown (LG). Add to those two, Fred Miller (RT), Roberto Garza (RG) and John Tait (LT). How will the Jets measure up? The Jets’ line is up and coming, but D’Brickashaw has a lot of work to do in the running game, and the team might possibly be losing arguably their best run blocker in Anthony Clement.

Adam Timmerman to Seattle?
Published 4/4/2007 by thesportsmaster8000 at The Sportsmaster 8000
... . Timmerman played primarily as a right guard on the Rams offensive line but could be used to fill the void left by LG Steve Hutchinson s departure from Seattle. The main drawback with Timmerman is his age, he s 35-years old and not getting any younger. In a world with stats-o-plenty it is hard to find solid stats for an offensive line, let alone an offensive guard. According to Football Outsiders , the center/guard combo for St. Louis ranked second in the league based on an adjusted line yards formula. St. Louis was bested only by Chicago, who, as we all know, played in the Super Bowl. These stats tend to be based on running statistics which bodes well for a Seattle squad that ranked 30th in the league in run blocking. After losing out in the Kris Dielman sweepstakes, the Seahawks are still in desperate need of a guard. Timmerman and Coach Holmgren have some history, Timmerman played for Holmgren back in Green Bay. Th

TJB Chat Hijack: ESPN Post Draft Edition
Published 5/4/2007 by Bassett at thejetsblog.com
... As far as better at every position, let’s start with the offensive line. Although both our run blocking was about the same (the Jets were better) the Jets let up 13 less sacks than the Bills did. Need I move on? Pennington is a better thinking QB than Losman (who don’t get me wrong, has a cannon), and was rated as such

Stats: Jones and His Line Are Going to be in the Spotlight
Published 5/18/2007 by Bassett at thejetsblog.com
... . Taking those numbers and placing them against his team’s Adjusted Line Yards, his team got progressively better in ALY from 28th in 2004, to 15th in 2005 and 10th in 2006.

Faneca Might Get Paid, It Just Won't Be in Pittsburgh
Published 5/22/2007 by Ryan Wilson at FanHouse
... : I completely understand that Troy Polamalu is a free agent as well and needs a new deal. But if there were actual negotiations, there could've been room for both. And Faneca is clearly coming off of a better and healthier season. Come again? When Schein says "better and healthier" does he just mean "healthier"? If so, then fine, he's right. But if he meant what he wrote, then he's very, very wrong. Let's say Faneca is the best guard in the galaxy, according to Football Outsiders' offensive line stats , the Steelers ranked 22nd in the running game and 25th in the passing game. Faneca's worth a large chunk of the salary cap for those type of numbers? Really? I know he's not responsible for all the o-line's issues (or most of them, for that matter), but wouldn't that money be better spent upgrading some of the other positions? Like, say, right guard or right tackle? Schein does suggest near the end of the article that the Stee

Showing T-Jack Some Love
Published 5/23/2007 by Brandon at Acme Packing Company: Front Page Posts
... Another problem for Jackson are his lackluster offensive teammates. Their offensive line was average according to Football Outsiders last season, they didn't impress in either game versus the Packers in 2006, and nothing was done to improve them during either the draft

What's Holding the Saints Back(s)?
Published 6/21/2007 by Sunil <info@canalstreetchronicles.com> at Canal Street Chronicles: Front Page Posts
... I'm of the opinion that any increase in running success that the team experiences in 2007 will be more of a product of the running backs, and less a product of the line. Indeed, using a few important statistics provided by the increasingly relevant Football Outsiders, we can start to break down just how good the Saints offensive line was last season, and where the most potential for improvement lies. ...

It's time to Talk Backup Quarterbacks
Published 6/29/2007 by Sunil <info@canalstreetchronicles.com> at Canal Street Chronicles: Front Page Posts
... That the Saints traversed the 2006 season with backup quarterback Jamie Martin only throwing 24 passes, all of which happened in a meaningless week 17 game against Carolina, is a sizable miracle. Combine an offensive line that performed admirably on passing plays--the Football Outsiders ranked them 4th in Sack Rate--and a plethora of receivers who attack the defense at all angles, and you can see why Brees took an unusually low number of hits. To be sure, Brees is a superior talent who will not be easily replaced if he is injured; he certainly made his line better. [Small Sample Size Alert!] I deliver this stat with the qualifier that week 17 involved a team of mostly second stringers going against a motivated Carolina team, but of the Saints 23 sacks allowed last season, 5 involved Jamie Martin. Still, I maintain that the Saints can't just plug in a quarterback and expect the offense not to mis ...

Are Bugel’s Boys Overrated?
Published 6/30/2007 by Greg Trippiedi at Hog Heaven
... In addition, Football Outsider’s advanced line metrics show that the Redskins enjoyed significantly more offensive running sucess when running on either shoulder of the now departed Derrick Dockery than any other of the starting lineman.  Perhaps Tood Wade will be stepping into a much bigger role than anyone could have predicted. ...

Debate With Self: Ahman Green
Published 7/1/2007 by Stephanie Stradley at FanHouse
... Interestingly, the FootballGuys go on to make the point that even with the Texans running game struggling for a good part of the season, Houston's seven running backs combined for 2,034 yards and 12 TDs. In addition, Footballoutsiders.com stats show that the Texans running game last season was 8th in the league in power stats and 5th in the league in avoiding being stuffed. (see their guidelines on what that means). In other words, Green isn't coming into as dire of a run blocking situation as some observers think. ...

Crawling Toward Week 1
Published 7/13/2007 by VanRam <info@turfshowtimes.com> at Turf Show Times: Front Page Posts
... Checking the stats at Football Outsiders, the 2006 Panthers struggled more than you would expect any team with Steve Smith to struggle. Per DVOA, the Panthers running game had a DVOA of -6.7%, 19th in the league. Their air attack led by Delhomme and Smith, who both missed some time last season, ranked 17th in the league with a -2.2% DVOA. Besides the injuries, poor play from the offensive line gets most of the blame. FO's power stat for O-lines measures the success of running plays on third or fourth down that resulted in first downs or TDs. The Panthers o-line ranked 31st in the league with a 50% DVOA in that category, a poor result for a team with two pretty good RBs in Foster and the exciting rookie DeAngelo Williams. Look also at their stuffed rank, which measures "Percentage of runs that result in (on first down) zero or negative gain or (on second through fourth down) less than one-fourth the yards needed for another f ...

Mocking Subjective Unit Rankings: OL
Published 7/14/2007 by Sunil <info@canalstreetchronicles.com> at Canal Street Chronicles: Front Page Posts
... the offensive line's contribution to the Saints' running game. In terms of the Outsiders' Adjusted Line Yards, an average running back would be expected to gain 4.37 yards-per-carry behind the Saints' line. The fact that the Saints only averaged 3.7 (the Outsiders say 3.99) yards-per-carry reflected more on the runners than the line. ...

Around the NFC West: Saint Louis
Published 8/18/2007 by John Morgan <info@fieldgulls.com> at Field Gulls: Front Page Posts
... The best news for Rams' fans is that by all accounts the interior line and especially Adam Carriker clogged lanes and shut down a potentially very good Viking rushing attack. Considering just the first half and removing QB scrambles, the Vikings were still successful on 5 of 11 runs, including 2 first down conversions, but averaged less than 2.1 yards per carry. The Vikings were the twelfth ranked team in Power Success, so for a Rams team that was some kind of awful on run defense last season, that half has to be considered a success. The run defense is the Rams only defensive component which has any chance of being even adequate, but for a team with a lot of potential offensive fire power, that could still do wonders for their playoff chances. For one, being able to stop the rushing attack prevents a team from sitting on a lead in the second half. The Rams get another good test against the Chargers, do it twice and I might b ...

Tubbs Returns
Published 8/20/2007 by John Morgan <info@fieldgulls.com> at Field Gulls: Front Page Posts
... Instead of wishcasting Tubbs' contributions, I will say simply that the next few weeks should tell us much about where he is in his recovery. Amare Stoudamire looked similarly healed, but his knees stiffened up under the stress of play. The Hawks start the regular season against the 21st, 29th and 32nd ranked teams at creating runs of 10 or more yards. Should Tubbs need more time to recover, the first three weeks offer as good as chance as any to use him sparingly.

Making the Preseason Count: Offense
Published 8/22/2007 by VanRam <info@turfshowtimes.com> at Turf Show Times: Front Page Posts
... As far as run blocking, the Rams were 6th best in the league last season in terms of Football Outsiders' Adjust Line Yards (ALY) stat, where they gained 4.50 yards per carry. In the middle, they were second best in the league with 4.77 yards per carry per ALY, which is where they ran the ball on 57% of all RB carries. We know the O-line is capable of being an elite run blocking unit. Judging them on a quarter of play is tough. ...

Preseason: Packers 13, Jacksonville 21
Published 8/24/2007 by Brandon at Acme Packing Company: Front Page Posts
... on, only struggling early when LG Daryn Colledge got bull rushed into QB Brett Favre for a sack. The 1st team offense was able to move the ball on nearly every possession, but a failed 4th down conversion and a WR James Jones fumble killed two good drives. However TE Bubba Franks had another big reception, followed up with a good catch by TE Donald Lee, and both tight ends appear to be playing very well. What a first half for Jones who was spectacular getting open in the middle of the field and when he had to fight the for the ball. The calf injury suffered by RG Jason Spitz isn't as serious a blow as the injury to Driver, but hopefully that isn't a problem either. OL Junius Coston got a lot more playing time too and he has looked very good this preseason as a backup tackle. It looked like they abandoned the run, but since Jacksonville is so good at run defense and the Packers have so few healthy running backs, this probably wasn't a bad idea. The defensive line was playing a ...

Matchupalooza: Brandon Mebane v. Arron Sears
Published 9/8/2007 by John Morgan <info@fieldgulls.com> at Field Gulls: Front Page Posts
... Sears is a powerful young guard. Powerful as-is, powerfully built and with room to add more. Concerns about an arthritic knee pushed down his draft stock, but wherever he is in five years has nothing to do with Sunday. Jon Gruden loves to rush up the gut, directing more than half his runs up the middle each of the last two seasons. The same should prove true on Sunday, as Gruden will look to overpower Seattle with Sears and 2006 first round selection Davin Joseph. Unfortunately for the Hawks, being overpowered has become par for the course for Rocky Bernard and Chartric Darby, making it all the more important that Brandon Mebane can step in a stuff the line on obvious running downs. ...

Despite Poor Record, Bills Still Have Bright Spots
Published 9/26/2007 by Brian Galliford <info@buffalorumblings.com> at Buffalo Rumblings: Front Page Posts
... OT Langston Walker Walker gets the nod here, but the entire offensive line has, at least in my estimation, performed above my early-season expectations thus far. But Walker came into Buffalo with a lot of question marks and playing second fiddle to Derrick Dockery. Yet of Marshawn Lynch's most explosive runs this year - including his first touchdown against Denver - the majority of them are coming off the right side. That explains why the Bills are running right more than left, even with our supposedly excellent left side of the line. Protection issues have come from the blind side or up the middle, as a general rule, as well - and notice it's Jason Peters, and not Walker, who is being flagged for at least one false start or hold per game. Walker is clearly outperforming Peters at this point - he's playing very well.

Anonymous Defensive Coordinator Thinks Grossman's Struggles Not All on Grossman
Published 9/26/2007 by Ryan Wilson at FanHouse
... Yeah, I get that when pressured in the pocket, a quarterback often makes bad decisions. According to Football Outsiders, the Bears' offensive line, through the first three games, ranks 25th in adjusted sack rate. So the nameless defensive coordinator is spot on ... ...

Opponent Overview: The San Francisco 49ers
Published 9/27/2007 by John Morgan <info@fieldgulls.com> at Field Gulls: Front Page Posts
... The Niners pass it short and run hard up the middle (a full 66% of all rushes, fifth in the NFL). The system is designed to protect the quarterback, keep the ball moving upfield and cash in with big run plays. To accomplish this San Francisco employs a lot of designed roll outs, curl routes, drag routes and halfback passes. It is, plainly, a neutered offense not unlike what Seattle employs when Seneca Wallace is forced into action. That is important context to consider when evaluating just how bad Smith and this passing offense have been. For the year Smith has a 51.8% completion percentage, a 4.78 net yards per passing attempt (To put that into context, Charlie Frye had 5.0 NY/P in 2005, Beck 7.0 NY/P the same year) and most accurately a -22.5% VOA for the season. ...

Gamethread: Jets at Bills 9/30/2007
Published 9/30/2007 by Bassett at thejetsblog.com
... Air: The Bills have a tough time defending against the run, but they have also struggled mightily in defending the pass. . Should the Jets not be able to establish an effective running game, the burden will fall on Chad to move the ball through the air. Chad hasn’t piled in the yards so far, but he has the second highest QB Rating in three weeks (only behind Tom Brady) and with a depleted secondary and linebacking corps, the Jets should be able to have nice progressions and find the open man at will all day. The Jets offensive line has allowed 10 sacks in three games, and is ranked 29th according to Football Outsiders in terms of allowing sacks in 10% of their passing plays. Look for the line who has struggled in line assignments the first two weeks, to continue to tighten up against the Bills, but pay close attention to D’Brick and how he fares against Aaron Schobel, who victimized ...

Born and Raised on the Cleveland Browns: Week 4
Published 10/1/2007 by Alex at Mistake by the Lake Sporting Times
... Corey says: As a follow-up to that, I would like to point out that, heading into Week 4, the Browns ranked 19th in the league in Adjusted Sack Rate, having given up a sack on roughly 7.1% of passing plays. After this game, they'll probably rank somewhere in the 10th to 15th range, which isn't bad. But wait! 6 of the Browns' 8 sacks came in the first half of the first game of the year—that is to say, with Charlie Frye under center. Now, you may recall from Week 1's ...

Browns at Patriots Preview
Published 10/5/2007 by Corey at Mistake by the Lake Sporting Times
... . Browns offense vs. Patriots defense: CLE offense NE defense total DVOA -1.1% -20.9% passing 8.4% -21.1% rushing -12.5% -20.8% The Browns now rank 19th in offensive DVOA after a mediocre performance against the (theoretically) strong Ravens defense. The passing offense ranks 13th, as Derek Anderson (21.6 DPAR 31.3% DVOA), Braylon Edwards (9.6, 31.1%), and Kellen Winslow (12.4, 51.0%) have all put up some impressive numbers. The running game, on the other hand, has left something to be desired. I thought this was interesting—take a look at the Browns' distribution of runs in each direction, along with their Adjusted Line Yards (a statistic designed to reflect the contribution of the offensive line) for each type of run: freq. ALY ALY rank left end 6% 6.01 3 left tackle 18% 5.31 9 mid/guard 64% 4.25 18 right tackle 8% 3.10 29 right end ...

Jonas Jennings to Miss Sunday
Published 10/5/2007 by Tom Mantzouranis at FanHouse
... The 49ers' offensive line has been pretty underwhelming this year. That should come as no surprise to anyone who's watched them play. But how bad? According to Football Outsiders, they rank 31st in run blocking and 28th in pass protection, although if you ask ...

Analyzing the Bengals first quarter of the season
Published 10/7/2007 by Kirkendall <info@cincyjungle.com> at Cincy Jungle: Front Page Posts
... The offensive line hasn't blocked well for him either. In a lot of negative rush attempts, Rudi Johnson is forced to negotiate with at least one defender in the backfield. On 29% of all rush attempts, the Bengals were stuffed -- percentage of runs that result in (on first down) zero or negative gain or (on second through fourth down) less than one-fourth the yards needed for another first down -- which ranks 27th in the league. The Bengals offensive line scored a 3.64 adjusted line yards -- ranked 29th. Their power success -- percentage of runs on third or fourth down, two yards or less to go, that achieved a first down or touchdown -- improves (71%) with a respectable 11th. ...

Green Bay Packers preview: Offense
Published 10/11/2007 by Skin Patrol <info@hogshaven.com> at Hogs Haven: Front Page Posts
... tells most of the same but some that may surprise. The Packers are not cellar dwellar runners as absolute figures would suggest but instead are 14th in the league behind their 6th ranked passing unit, combining for 5th in the league. No such luck for the Packers offensive offensive line, at least as regards the run, as they rank 30th. Saving grace is that they are 5th in adjusted sack rate, giving up a sack 3.6% of the time on pass plays, good for 5th in the league. (We're 3rd.) ...

Yo Cardinals, you've got some snoo on your nose. What's snoo? I dunno, what's new with you?
Published 10/18/2007 by Skin Patrol <info@hogshaven.com> at Hogs Haven: Front Page Posts
... and I don't know who he is. Their quarterbacks might not either; he has just 6 receptions (with a touchdown, though). Bright spots on the team is their offensive line, which is one of the best in the NFL: 6th in Adjusted Line Yards, 3rd in Power Success (85% of the time they have a 3rd or 4th down with under 2 yards to go, they convert. That is outstanding. By comparison, we convert 54% of the time and the league average is 66% of the time), and have the 9th least amount of runs "that result in (on first down) zero or negative gain or (on second through fourth down) less than one-fourth the yards needed for another first down." Their sack %, measure of sacks divided by pass snaps, is 2nd only to Indy at 3.4%, nearly half the league's average of 6.5%. It will be difficult to get to Tim Rattay Tim "Tim Hasselbeck" Hasselbeck. ...

The Giants O-Line Has Been Very Impressive
Published 10/18/2007 by Ryan Wilson at FanHouse
... In fact, I was a lot off. Through six weeks, the Giants are 4-2 and the offensive line ranks 5th in both run blocking and pass blocking, according to Football Outsiders. The unit has allowed just six sacks, which is mind-boggling when you consider defensive end ...

The Value of Vick
Published 10/19/2007 at Sportszilla and the Jabber Jocks
... r with a 7.7 DPAR and a -8.8% DVOA, but he wasn’t exactly a great passer either. It’s probably safe to assume that one would rather have had Vick’s legs than Young’s arm. The next QBs on the list with 40 rushes were David Carr and Charlie Frye, both of whom had negative DVOA’s rushing. David Garrard is the only interesting one on here as his 37 carries led him to an 18.8% DVOA. Still, even if he maintained through a full year, he’d still not be as effective on the ground as Vick was. All of this goes to show that Vick excelled at a runner. To the degree that Peyton Manning was a better quarterback than everyone else in 2006 according to DVOA, Vick was that much better than any other quarterback running the ball. Are we assigning that enough value? Well, we can’t be sure, so let’s continue on. Moving back to Vick vs. Harrington. If the latter really hasn’t been so bad passing, then is something else the problem? One thought could be the offensive line. ...

Bit by bit...
Published 10/20/2007 by VanRam <info@turfshowtimes.com> at Turf Show Times: Front Page Posts
... On the other side of the ball, the decline of Shaun Alexander is no secret. He's averaging less than 4 yards per carry this season, and Seattle's mediocre offensive line play. In fact, Seattle's line is playing generally worse than ours. Per FO, Seattle has 3.67 adjusted line yards, compared to the Rams 3.99. In terms of pass protection, they're almost exactly equal to the Rams, both lines sport sack rates of 7.7% with Seattle having allowed two less sacks (15) than the Rams (17). ...

The Tape: Defense
Published 10/23/2007 by John Morgan <info@fieldgulls.com> at Field Gulls: Front Page Posts
... Let's start with runs up the middle. Saint Louis averages 4.33 adjusted line yards on runs up the middle for the season. That's fifteenth in all of football. Their total for Sunday was 1.33 yards per rush on runs up the middle. That's three rushes for negative yardage, four more for 0 to 3 yards, one 12 yard rush and one 14 yard rush. I don't have the resources to adjust for strength of opponent, but Seattle ranks 16th in adjusted line yards allowed for runs up the middle, 4.16, so it's more or less a push. In other words, Seattle absolutely dominated the Rams ground game on rushes up the middle. Nine rushes is not an overwhelming sample size, but bare in mind that adjusted line yards is less susceptible to wild fluctuations. The most any one run can contribute is 7 yards, 4 for the initial 4 yards and three more for the remaining 6 yards. After that it's no longer counted. Even if the Rams exploded through the middle for a ...

Born and Raised on the Cleveland Browns: Week 8
Published 10/29/2007 by Alex at Mistake by the Lake Sporting Times
... Corey says: The Browns offensive line continues to cement itself as a top unit. Heading into Week 8, they ranked 10th in Adjusted Line Yards, but it has really been the left side of the line that's dominated: ALY rank ...

Breaking Down the Offensive Line
Published 11/1/2007 by Matty I <info@thephinsider.com> at The Phinsider: Front Page Posts
... . The one key stat they use to statistically analyze the offensive line is something called Adjusted Line Yards (ALY). Here's an explanation of how they calculate the stat. We are also going to talk about something called the "stuffed percentage," which is explained on that same page and is basically the percentage of runs that result in no yards ot negative yards relative to the game situation. The other stat we'll discuss is "power success" and is also explained on that same page. Power success, in a nutshell, is how successful a team is on 3rd and 4th down with 2 or fewer yards to go. Here are the statistical breakdowns: You can see marked improvement in every category. What I'm really impressed with here is the power success and the stuffed percentage. Having an 81% power success rate means that this team is able to convert on 3rd and shorts often, allowing drives to continue. The stuffed percentage decrease is also v ...

Matchupalooza: Darryl Tapp V. Joe Thomas
Published 11/2/2007 by John Morgan <info@fieldgulls.com> at Field Gulls: Front Page Posts
... This week the Browns expect the glove to be on the other hand. Thomas has immediately established himself as one of the best left tackles in football. He's a dominant run blocker and a bonus in pass coverage. The Browns would like to match Thomas against Tapp and forget about them, seeing Tapp only in passing whilst driving a rush down Kelly Jennings' throat. One need only to look at the two teams inverted adjusted line yards rankings on runs around left end to know the potential enormity of such a scenario, Cleveland first on offense, ...

Fixing the Rams
Published 11/3/2007 by VanRam <info@turfshowtimes.com> at Turf Show Times: Front Page Posts
... Go to the stats, they confirm it. The Rams rank sixth in the league with 4.83 average line yards on the right end. In the middle, they average 4.07 line yards (19th in the leagu), but Romberg was out of the game as was Incognito, making the middle ripe for exploitation from a Brown Box Stack (that's probably not the official name for that particular defensive play). ...

Five Questions with Jason from Bleeding Green Nation
Published 11/9/2007 by Skin Patrol <info@hogshaven.com> at Hogs Haven: Front Page Posts
... The struggles Donovan McNabb has had at times I think has had much more to do with it. Earlier in the year he was flat out not ready to play and just looked terrible(esp in weeks one and two), he's been inconsistent at other times... Certainly LJ Smith would be a nice weapon for when we get into the red zone, which has been a problem area for us, but a fully healthy and on form McNabb would be even better. HH: The offensive line is giving up (source FO) sacks on 9.1% of passing plays, which is 28th in the league and well above the ...

Grading The O-Line: The Midseason Update
Published 11/9/2007 by JJ Cooper at FanHouse
... The Steelers offensive line this year has both not been as good as the national media thinks, and not as bad as many Steelers fans believe. The Steelers rank 15th in the league in run blocking (according to Football Outsiders) and 20th in sack rate, although those rankings do not include the Steelers win against the Ravens. With that in mind, here's a look at each member of the offensive line. ...

Browns Could Be Without Two Starters on the Offensive Line
Published 11/11/2007 by Ryan Wilson at FanHouse
... According to Football Outsiders, Cleveland's o-line ranks 11th in protecting the passer, an area of the game that had been a glaring weakness ... well, forever. Eight games in, the Browns have only given up 13 sacks, something Charlie Frye could pull off in a good afternoon's work. ...

LenDale v. the Jaguars: Every Play
Published 11/15/2007 by Tom Gower at Total Titans
... it’s tough to have an effective running game. Fifth Carry: 1&10, own 13, 1Q 1:54 Result: 2 yards The Titans start backed up on their second drive after a mediocre kickoff return. They start in the shotgun, with White as the lone setback and 4 WRs to spread the field. The Jags counter with 6 in the box, plus Nelson over the slot WR to the right side, well-positioned to provide support in the run game. Get the impression the Jags think the Titans run to the right side more? Well, They’re right . Oddly enough, too, the Titans ...

Is Carson Palmer's regression simply a bad year?
Published 11/19/2007 by Kirkendall <info@cincyjungle.com> at Cincy Jungle: Front Page Posts
... to be effective. The offensive line, in a two year span, went from one of the league's best to pass effective (4.4% ASR, 8th), but compromised for the rush (3.90 ...

Bleeding eyes recap: Redskins lose to the Cowboys 28-23
Published 11/19/2007 by Skin Patrol <info@hogshaven.com> at Hogs Haven: Front Page Posts
... . 55 passing plays with only 1 sack is impressive against a Cowboys defense that ranks 3rd in the NFL in sacks. Per Football Outsiders, the league average for sacks given up per passing play is 6.5%. The Redskins averaged  4.2% as of the 14th. Yesterday we gave up 1.8%. Per ...

One step forward one step backwards
Published 11/24/2007 by Skin Patrol <info@hogshaven.com> at Hogs Haven: Front Page Posts
... But while he dressed, Todd Wade (knee) and Pete Kendall (arthritic knee, no bologna) did not. That's pretty much been par for the course this season on our offensive line, as we've been without someone for its entirety. And yet, to the enormous credit of Joe Bugel and the replacements, the line has played admirably this season. I'd prefer a higher power success rate than 58% (24th in the league on third and fourth down with 2 or fewer yards to go), but the pass protection has been inspired. We are 7th in the league on adjusted sack percentage yielding to the pass rush on ...

Rams Depth Chart: Offense
Published 11/24/2007 by John Morgan <info@fieldgulls.com> at Field Gulls: Front Page Posts
... ), but now are a bit below average (19). Leckey is a center playing guard, and, as is so often the case with centers playing guard, is more a finesse pass blocker than any kind of run blocker. ...

Statapalooza: The Return of the Precarious Son
Published 11/29/2007 by John Morgan <info@fieldgulls.com> at Field Gulls: Front Page Posts
... Numbers Lie Like A Persian Hooker: Football Outsiders ranks the Eagles pass blocking as bad, rather the awful. Awful is the correct answer. Westbrook's ability to bail Eagles quarterbacks out of pressure keeps that number artificially low, just like Holmgren telegraphing his gameplan and the Hawks many slot receivers inability to shed coverage keeps Seattle's number artificially high. ...

A Tale of Two Sides of the Defense
Published 11/30/2007 by Skin Patrol <info@hogshaven.com> at Hogs Haven: Front Page Posts
... It does not take a hall of fame coach to look at the above numbers to figure out that we need to run, with prejudice, against the Buffalo Bills on the right end and avoid, with prejudice, the left end. Unfortunately, we don't match up. Per FO's Offensive Line Rankings, we do our worst work against the right end: 3.68 Adjusted Line Yards bad for 22nd in the league. We're 14th in the league to the left end (which means that dog won't hunt), 4th to the left tackle, 10th up the middle or behind a guard, and 15th right tackle. ...

On the Effect of Adding a Good Guard
Published 12/4/2007 by Bassett at thejetsblog.com
... I think the world of Joe Thomas, and I think that time will prove him to be a superior prospect to Brick, but I think that his excellent play comes largely from having such a good Guard to his right. A quick check at Football Outsiders, and you can see that the difference in effectiveness between the line in 2006 (31st in run blocking, 26th in pass blocking) and 2007 (6th in run blocking, 5th in pass blocking) is staggering. ...

The Tape: 4th Quarter: Walrus Bowl Finale: Holmgren Pulls A Homer
Published 12/5/2007 by John Morgan <info@fieldgulls.com> at Field Gulls: Front Page Posts
... drive by any stretch of the imagination. They are smart enough to put two receivers wide, opening some possibility of a pass. Given that the Eagles have 3 timeouts, but must (at least, one can anticipate) march the length of the field if they get the ball back, you want them to at least burn one timeout. So a first down run makes some sense. What doesn't make sense is running it behind right end with Shaun Alexander. Right end is already the Hawks second weakest spot to run behind, (28th in the league) and Alexander hasn't the burst to get the ball to the edge in the best of ...

Steelers DVOA Rankings: The Good, The Bad and The Ugly
Published 12/5/2007 by cgolden <info@behindthesteelcurtain.com> at Behind the Steel Curtain: Front Page Posts
... Reed who is ranked 4th (7.3%) in FG/XP. Kickoffs, punts, and punt returns are still all below average though with kickoffs being the worst at -12.9% (only three teams are worse). Do you see the Steelers recent success in special teams coverage as a true sign of a turn around or as a product of the field conditions? Other Individual Player Rankings: Big Ben: 10th (21.2%) Holmes: 1st (57.9%) Ward: 41st (7.1%) Miller: 1st (59.1%) OL Power Rank: 21st OL Stuffed Rank: 18th OL Sack Rank: 32nd ...

Game # 13 Open Thread: Saints @ Falcons
Published 12/10/2007 by Sunil <info@canalstreetchronicles.com> at Canal Street Chronicles: Front Page Posts
... I'm just gonna come out and say it: The Saints' tackles are pretty terrible run blockers. Don't believe me? Check out the second table on this page, or check out the reproduced version below. The ...

Statapalooza: Doldrums
Published 12/13/2007 by John Morgan <info@fieldgulls.com> at Field Gulls: Front Page Posts
... Deshaun Foster?!? Yes he sucks, but the fast little boom/bust back that he is, he can get to edge like few rushers. As such, the Panthers are very good at running around the ends (3/3). The Hawks one weakness on run D is Kelly Jennings, Brian Russell and to a lesser extent Julian Peterson. Their power combined helps Seattle have the ...

Bills/Browns: The Battle in the Trenches
Published 12/15/2007 by Brian Galliford <info@buffalorumblings.com> at Buffalo Rumblings: Front Page Posts
... . For the purposes of our trench analysis, we'll use a stat called ALY (Adjusted Line Yards). Basically, if a running back gets stuffed, the line is 120% responsible for that yardage; if the back gains 0-4 yards, the offensive line is 100% responsible; 5-10 yards, 50% responsible and over 11 yards, 0%. This is then adjusted for down, distance, situation, etc. It's the best way out there to measure the effectiveness of an offensive line without considering the running back(s) involved. The same stat is used for ...

Emptying the Notebook: Rob Sims
Published 12/26/2007 by John Morgan <info@fieldgulls.com> at Field Gulls: Front Page Posts
... at preventing sacks, this season they've rebounded quite nicely to 16th. Sims, in a short space, controls his man, and what stats can't say is that Beck has routinely had good time in the pocket, and has suffered an inordinate number of cover sacks. His chemistry with Walter Jones is a protracted work in progress. Holmgren's recent use of "pop" blocks has helped Jones avoid getting beat outside, but also led to some ugly miscommunication, where bother blockers blocked in, and neither picked up the outside rush. Most noteworthy of which was the sack/fumble play late in the ...

Emptying the Notebook: Darryl Tapp
Published 12/28/2007 by John Morgan <info@fieldgulls.com> at Field Gulls: Front Page Posts
... I admit it; I'm ambivalent about Darryl Tapp. He busts his ass out there, gets some pressure and makes the occasional nice play in run support, but his big day against Milford "Suck" Brown looks - well the name sort of says it all. The rest of his sacks have come against quarterbacks who don't know when to throw it away (Grossman, Garcia, Alex Smith and Troy Smith) with shaky offensive lines (18th, 21st, 31st and 23rd, respectively.) He also consistently fails to seal off the outside edge: recording only 4 tackles on the 31 rushes attempted around left end against Seattle. ...

Matchupalooza: Redskins Rushing Attack Vs Seahawks Rush Defense: Part 1: The 1st Level
Published 12/31/2007 by John Morgan <info@fieldgulls.com> at Field Gulls: Front Page Posts
... The Skins are a slightly above average team at preventing their rushers from getting stuffed (12th). That has a lot to with numerous heavy personnel packages, that is, multiple TE/H-Backs, I and offset I formations, or a heavy trips package, often involving an additional offensive lineman working as an H-Back. It does not, unfortunately for the Skins, have much to do with their offensive line's run blocking. The Seattle Seahawks are an excellent team at stuffing the run ( ...

If Alan Faneca Leave Pittsburgh, the Bears Could Be Interested
Published 1/5/2008 by Ryan Wilson at FanHouse
... Friday he never has envisioned himself playing for the Bears but wouldn't rule it out. "I could see myself playing anywhere. I could see myself playing football. I can't name any places right now," he said.And the Bears should have plenty of money to make a run at Faneca if it comes to that, especially with Lance Briggs and Bernard Berrian likely having played their last games in Chicago. And seeing that the Bears' offensive line ranked 30th against the run, I'd say Faneca would be a welcome addition.   ...

2007 Titans Awards: A Contrarian Take
Published 1/12/2008 by Tom Gower at Total Titans
... normally pretty effective at creating holes for him. Then issue, then, was which offensive lineman to select, and LT Michael Roos was the clear choice. In his third year, he started all 16 games for the third year in a row, including the second at left tackle, the most important position on the offensive line, and was the same steadily effective player he’d been the year before. Stewart gets all the pub as the mauler, and he’s a bigger, more physical player than Roos, but the Titans were better , a lot better, running left tackle than they were right tackle. Roos was also a ...

Audible: The Offensive Line for 2008
Published 1/18/2008 by Bassett at thejetsblog.com
... , and the Average Line Yards on run plays in the middle of the field, the interior of the Pittsburgh line didn’t look so good in 2007. Isn’t there someone younger and more promising that the Jets could lock up for 4-5 years who is still in his mid 20s? To me that’s a better player to sign via free agency. ...

NFL First-Round Recap: Cleveland Browns
Published 1/29/2008 by Ryan Wilson at FanHouse
... What Thomas Did: All he did was start 16 games at left tackle and be a part of one of the best offensive lines in the league. According to Football Outsiders, the Browns o-line ranked third in run-blocking and fifth in pass-blocking. ...

Rams Position Review: Running Backs
Published 1/30/2008 by VanRam <info@turfshowtimes.com> at Turf Show Times: Front Page Posts
... Nevertheless, the Rams seem likely to resign Jackson. It's not a bad thing either, even in the context of the "don't overpay running backs" conversation. Right now, the Rams don't have the offensive line to insert just any running back. This year's bailing wire and twine version of the line just couldn't open the holes needed for even the most basic running game. Drafting a blue chip talent for the line will help in the long run, but it's not reasonable to assume even with a marquee addition like Chris Long the line would be among the league's elite in 2008. ...

Why Stephon Heyer is More Important than Continuity
Published 1/31/2008 by Greg Trippiedi at Hog Heaven
... at getting to the linebacker level.  Both of those things are things that will be corrected, likely in a single offseason, by line coach Joe Bugel. What doesn’t need to be improved is Heyer’s excellent hand position in pass blocking.  Heyer fights hands with opposing ends with the technique of a seven year professional.  Consequently, he’s an excellent pass blocker for a right tackle.  He’s got room to bulk up, but he’s a huge reason that the Redskins ranked above the mean in adjusted sack rate for offensive lines. To compare what Heyer could be–as soon as next year–to what ...

Position Review: Offensive Line
Published 2/5/2008 by Brandon at Acme Packing Company: Front Page Posts
This group of players probably frustrated Mike McCarthy the most this season. When asked what the team needed to work on he would often answer "fundamentals" and say that they needed to run the ball better. Still there were a number of things they did very well this season. One of the biggest concerns might be the starters health because all of them missed some time during the season. Here are their rankings from Football Outsiders: ...

New team colors: Maroon and black. Oh yea, and yellow.
Published 2/10/2008 by Skin Patrol <info@hogshaven.com> at Hogs Haven: Front Page Posts
... I'd note that our sack percentage increased from 2006 to 2007. I don't know how much that is attributable to Jason holding on to the ball a second too long, but to his credit we were far more banged up on the O-Line than we were a year prior. This certainly caused a brand new fumbling problem but still I think Campbell handled it well. Though he threw five more picks in '07 than he did in '06, his int % actually decreased from 2.9% to 2.6%. ...

Clinton Portis: Still the Face of the Franchise
Published 2/11/2008 by Greg Trippiedi at Hog Heaven
... constantly closed holes for Portis as he tried to remain patient. Most importantly, Portis fumbled the ball 6 times this year (and that doesn’t include a bottched exchange on his that was charged to Jason Campbell).  Only Reggie Bush had more fumbles this season. The lack of big play production, combined with a year-long case of fumbleitis, took it’s toll on Portis’s numbers in the rushing game, and also on the Redskins rushing totals.  While the Redskins offensive line ranked in the middle of the pack in Adjusted Line Yards (a partial credit to Portis’ ability to fight for ...

The Week That Was: Stone-Wahle
Published 2/15/2008 by John Morgan <info@fieldgulls.com> at Field Gulls: Front Page Posts
... So, if we assume that either Sean Locklear is re-signed or Seattle drafts a right tackle from this stacked class, the Hawks will feature above average or better pass blockers at every position down the line. The Hawk's line was already a very good pass blocking line, despite its 19th place ranking in adjusted sack rate. What that metric doesn't account for is Matt Hasselbeck's inability to scramble, Alexander's inability to function as an outlet receiver, the Hawk's depleted receivers inability to get open, Seattle's anemic rushing attack and the way opposing teams loaded up ...

Why we won’t draft a LT in the first?
Published 2/19/2008 by bigfatdrunk at DGDB&D: a Texans blog.
... At footballoutsiders.com, they have broken down offensive line play.  And what do their vicious computers say?  They say that, *gulp*, or offensive line don’t suck so much.  In fact, we were the best team about getting positive yards from the run, and we were the 10th best team at avoiding the sack.  There’s a lot to like from these stats.  AND, when you consider that we did all this with Ron Dayne (and a cloud of meringue) as our leading rusher, then we look all the better. ...

Rams approach free agent decisions
Published 2/27/2008 by VanRam <info@turfshowtimes.com> at Turf Show Times: Front Page Posts
... is an interesting option. He's only 26, and the Titans thought highly enough of him last year to tender him at the first round level. The Titans had a good rushing game last year, fifth in the league with 131 yards per game on average. According to Football Outsiders, they had an adjusted line yards number of 4.44 for the middle/guard direction, 8th best in the league. ...

Can Chris Wilson Improve on 4 Sacks?
Published 2/28/2008 by Greg Trippiedi at Hog Heaven
... Player Profile:   Chris Wilson, Defensive End, Northwood College (MI) Age:  25 NFL Experience:   1 year Contract Remaining:   2 years 2008 Cap Number:   $373,000 2008 Release Fee:   None One of the big reasons that the Redskins finished dead last in total defense, passing defense, and adjusted sack rate in 2006 was the lack of a 3rd down pass rusher type who could come into the game once every three plays and get pressure on the QB.  Chris Clemons had filled that role in 2005, but was released after suffering a knee injury in camp prior to the 2006 season.  No one came in to ...

Zorn and Greg Blache on our offense
Published 2/29/2008 by Skin Patrol <info@hogshaven.com> at Hogs Haven: Front Page Posts
... the team can get on the same page with new head coach Jim Zorn, though I remain cautiously optimistic. The talent is there: we'll return all our starters on offense, including two key guys on the offensive line. Randy Thomas will hopefully have more than 3 starts this year, Jansen more than one. In spite of those injuries, and some real question marks playing behind those guys (Stephon Heyer turned out to be a pleasent surprise though I felt Todd Wade disappointed) we had above average pass protection and an at least competitive run blocking unit. If Thomas and Jansen ...

TJ "Muscles Bucket" Duckett
Published 3/1/2008 by John Morgan <info@fieldgulls.com> at Field Gulls: Front Page Posts
... Starting to put it together... 11.7 DVOA/7.0 DPAR (Behind a rotten O-line no less) 23rd Adjusted Line Yards/50% Power Success With fresh tread on his tires... Just Turned 27/655 career carries (And can catch a little too) Career 8.7 Yards Per Reception For less than 3 million? Yes, please.

Stuck in the middle
Published 3/5/2008 by VanRam <info@turfshowtimes.com> at Turf Show Times: Front Page Posts
... Although he can play other positions, Bell made his money as a left guard and will continue to do so in St. Louis. Let's take a look back at his last two seasons with the Titans where he started at LG. (All info comes from Football Outsiders.) ...

Briefly, Julius Jones
Published 3/6/2008 by John Morgan <info@fieldgulls.com> at Field Gulls: Front Page Posts
... , on the 14th best run blocking line alongside a rusher who posted the second best DVOA, Marion Barber. Barber owned Jones' starting job by season's end and ensured Jones' ouster from Dallas. In 2007, Morris posted the 19th best DVOA, on the 29th best run blocking line alongside a rusher who posted the 7th worst DVOA, Shaun Alexander. Jones only carried the ball 24 more times than Morris, who has been plagued by a reputation of fragility or fatigability or whatever nonsense. In games where Morris received more than 10 carries he averaged 4.1 yards per carry. Obviously, YPC is ...

The Week That Was: The 5 Key Impacts of Seattle's Signings
Published 3/7/2008 by John Morgan <info@fieldgulls.com> at Field Gulls: Front Page Posts
... 4. The Longest Yard: Seattle was the 27th ranked team at converting short yardage with the ground game. The line gets debited for that deficiency, but it's not all their fault. Not one of Seattle's 3 returning backs (Alexander 55%, Morris 47%, Weaver 50%) was particularly successful in "Power" situations. To be fair, Weaver only received 4 carries. And to clarify, over the season "Power" situations encompassed all of 33 carries. Still, from a skill-set viewpoint, Seattle didn't have a player on roster known for his ability to mix it up between the tackles and fight for ...

Titans agree to terms with G Jake Scott
Published 3/10/2008 by Andrew Strickert at Total Titans
... , where he also noted Scott as a possible replacement for Bell. He may be a little undersized, but so was Bell. As a matter of fact, each of them are listed at 295 pounds. There shouldn’t be a lot of concern about Scott going up against big defensive tackles since he blocked for an Indy line that was rated fifth best in the league running up the middle and sixth best in pass protection . The move will allow Eugene Amano to play right guard as Benji Olson’s replacement, with both Dan Loper and Leroy Harris available as backups. It gives the Titans even more depth and gives the ...

Saturday Reading
Published 4/12/2008 by Saintsational <info@canalstreetchronicles.com> at Canal Street Chronicles: Front Page Posts
... be successful in this league without enough time to get passes off. I think the offensive line is one of the most over-looked aspects of football to the average fan but it is such an important part. The men "in the trenches" can often dictate a game. (That sounds like a John Madden soundbit in one of his video games.) Anyway, they have been pretty good the last two seasons and they are a huge part of the reason why the Saints have had a powerful offense. Check out Football Outsiders offensive line ratings. You will see we were ranked third best O-Line in the league for pass ...

Revisionism, Absolutism and Draft Grades
Published 4/28/2008 by John Morgan at Field Gulls: Front Page Posts
... Proponents of the revisionist argument took this chance to trumpet how inaccurate drafting could be. Except, those who questioned McNeill’s longterm viability were right then, and are beginning to look right now. McNeill allowed nearly twice as many sacks in 2007 (9.5) as he did in 2006 (5). The Chargers run blocking declined, and McNeill’s particular territory, left tackle, fell from 4th in adjusted line yards to 28th . Anecdotal evidence buttresses these facts; McNeill looked stiffer and slower – as if he were suffering from a ...

Sizing up the Seahawks
Published 5/1/2008 by VanRam at Turf Show Times: Front Page Posts
... Seattle did not draft an offensive lineman this year, not a one. Last season, they ranked 19th in pass protection , allowing 37 sacks and a had a sack rate of 7.1%. (The Rams, by comparison, has a sack rate of 8.1% and the paper thin o-line ranked 25th overall in pass protection.) With LT Walter Jones another year older and at a little higher risk for injury, they could very well struggle with pass protection. At the very least, figuring they stay at about the same level, the Rams figure to be much improved in their pass rush. The addition of Chris Long, the return of Leonard ...

Briefly, Shane Olivea
Published 5/2/2008 by John Morgan at Field Gulls: Front Page Posts
... His run blocking, is, eh, less impressive. In his first 3 seasons, the Chargers were consistently top 10 rushing around right tackle. In 2007, they were among the league’s worst, 29th. ...

Season Retro: Sean Locklear
Published 5/30/2008 by John Morgan at Field Gulls: Front Page Posts
... recognized for how infrequently he forces you to recognize him. Locklear is a steady right offensive tackle that excels against speed rushers. His greatest weakness is a sustained bull rush. His poorest showings were both against 3-4 defenses, at Cleveland and at Pittsburgh. I don’t expect Locklear to play especially better this coming season, but I do think three separate factors will improve the perception of his play. The first is a running back capable of reaching the edge. Seattle ran the ball just 38 times off right end, and was the third worst team in ...

Harbingers of woe?
Published 6/5/2008 by Nick (noreply@blogger.com) at Forest City Fanatics
... Keeping Anderson and Quinn on the same roster risks a great divide amongst the players, coaching staff, front office, and fan base. But just as important, having two good quarterbacks is a luxury that the Browns cannot afford, and simply don't need. According to Football Outsiders' adjusted sack percentage, the Browns were the fifth best team in the NFL at protecting the quarterback in 2007. Good teams with good offensive lines need not worry about serious quarterback injuries. Heck, the Jim Sorgis and Matt Cassels of the world can attest to that. ...

What Can Go Wrong: Dallas Cowboys
Published 6/5/2008 by John Morgan at Field Gulls: Front Page Posts
... The Cowboys were a better team than Seattle in 2007. If Adam Jones steps up and stays clean, they could be the best team in football in 2008. Their Achilles Heal is their offensive line. Barber’s hard nosed rushing style and Romo’s grace under pressure helps Dallas look like an above average offensive line (14th run blocking, 7th pass blocking), but (to my eye) their true talent rates as average pass blocking, below average run blocking. Left tackle Flozell Adams has the mix of age, inconsistency and post-contract-year-push letdown that often presages decline or ...

O-line shuffle
Published 6/6/2008 by VanRam at Turf Show Times: Front Page Posts
... Think Al Saunders plans to use the middle of the field much? Last season runs through the center/guard positions accounted for 39% of Washington's running plays, and ...

49ers thoughts from Football Outsiders
Published 6/8/2008 by Fooch at Niners Nation: Front Page Posts
... to ninth in 2007. Considering the damage that Staley’s predecessor Kwame Harris was doing to the psyche of the 49ers’ fanbase, the trade seems like at least a wash for San Francisco. ...

Vernon Carey: Back to Right Tackle
Published 6/12/2008 by Matty I at The Phinsider: Front Page Posts
... Where Carey really excels on the field is as a mauling run-blocker.  And that's exactly what the right tackle has to specialize in.  In 2007, the Dolphins averaged 5.05 yards per carry running behind Vernon Carey, according to the Football Outsiders.  That was good enough for 4th best in the league among all left tackles.  In 2006, when Carey played right tackle, the Dolphins averaged 4.76 yards per carry behind Vernon.  That's good enough for 2nd best that season. ...

Football Explained: Middle Linebacker
Published 6/12/2008 by John Morgan at Field Gulls: Front Page Posts
... Apart from its more high-minded duties, middle linebackers serve as a 4-3’s primary run tackler. Many 4-3 defenses use the line to channel opposing rushers to the middle linebacker. That’s not as prevalent as it once was, or is in the amateur ranks, but because roughly half of all rushes are “up the middle”, that is, behind the center or guards, the defense needn’t influence the play for the rusher to enter the linebacker’s zone of control. Because middle linebackers are measured above all else by their tackling prowess, people often equate ...

Barry Sims: Who is this guy?
Published 6/19/2008 by Jeff Roman at Rams Gab
... According to Football Outsiders stat pack (http://www.footballoutsiders.com/stats/ol.php), Barry ranked middle of the pack for runs to the left tackle or left end. (League average is 4.05 Adjusted Line Yards for Left End and 4.35 ALY for Left Tackle.) For runs to the Left End, Barry (and the TE and other Offensive Line mates) recorded 3.71 ALY – which ranked 23rd in the league. Not very good. He also recorded 4.53 ALY on runs to the Left Tackle – which ranked 11th in the league. ...

Sims signs with 49ers
Published 6/23/2008 by VanRam at Turf Show Times: Front Page Posts
... Oakland's o-line had a better Adjusted Line Yards rating than the Rams last season, according to Football Outsiders, but they ranked worse than the Rams in pass protection (8.5% sack rate versus 8.1%) as well as running down resulting in runs of 10 yards or more and running plays resulting in zero or negative gains. ...

Juggernaut Index No. 24: Roddy, Ryan and the Burner
Published 7/14/2008 by Andy Behrens at Roto Arcade
... The Falcons' O-line was sketchy on its best days in '07, although Warrick Dunn and Joey Harrington did very little to make that unit look good. Atlanta will likely start ...

Juggernaut Index No. 23: Look, it's Andre Johnson and a bunch of dudes you'll use to cover bye weeks
Published 7/15/2008 by Andy Behrens at Roto Arcade
... . But the Texans' O-line wasn't their biggest problem last season. In fact, they generally kept ball-carriers from getting stuffed, and they ...

Juggernaut Index No. 22: There are three Chiefs worth drafting. Ideally, there would be a fourth
Published 7/16/2008 by Andy Behrens at Roto Arcade
... It should of course be noted that he received very little help from his O-line. They allowed a league-worst 55 sacks, and they were poor run-blockers. They did, however, become very skilled at assisting quarterbacks to their feet. The Chiefs added an exceptional lineman in the NFL Draft, Virginia guard Branden Albert, and he's expected to move to tackle as a rookie. Here's Rivals' assessment: ...

The War on 4 is over; let the children rejoice and sing
Published 8/7/2008 by MJD at Shutdown Corner
... • The offensive line is a question mark. And the fact that it's a question mark is a good thing, as the only question mark involved last year was at the end of the sentence, "Are those real offensive linemen, or have the Jets just put jerseys on five tackling dummies?" According to the Football Outsiders rankings, the Jets ranked 30th in pass protection last year, and the following sentence comes from ...

49ers-Raiders: Measurements of success
Published 8/8/2008 by Fooch at Niners Nation: Front Page Posts
... have overshadowed the defense, which has the pieces in place to do some good things this season.  As far as I'm concerned, the Raiders first team offense is an offense on the rise.  If JaMarcus Russell can get on board with his receivers and the running game continues to improve, they'll provide a nice little challenge.  The 49ers defense has continued to add quality pieces and will get a stiff challenge right off the bat.  The Raiders didn't have the greatest pass protection last season, so hopefully the 49ers defensive line and linebackers ...

Saturday Mourning
Published 8/28/2008 by Deshawn Zombie (noreply@blogger.com) at 18 to 88
... league, and for his sake, I was hoping he'd have a great year so he could sign one more big time deal. As it stands, he's gone for probably a couple of months, maybe more. I have no idea what this does to his chances for getting resigned by the Colts (maybe it helps because now his market value is crap), but it probably won't be the big time offseason he and his family were probably hoping for. I'm sure he'll be in the Ring of Honor some day. Links: FO linked to a Scouts Inc. animation of every team's 'best play'. It's a ...

Seattle @ Buffalo: Losing Up The Middle, Winning On The Edges
Published 9/4/2008 by John Morgan at Field Gulls: Front Page Posts
... It's an early test for Wahle. Last season, his pull blocking contributed to Carolina's 3rd ranked run blocking on rushes off the left offensive end. It's a test I think Wahle will pass, and I think running to outside, especially the outside left, will power Seattle's rushing attack. ...

Raiders v. Chiefs Preview: The Raiders are the Stray Dogs of the AFC West
Published 25 days ago by Chris at Arrowhead Pride: Front Page Posts
... , I think this weekend's match up could be very good for the Chiefs defensive line. Football Outsiders pegged the 2007 Raider offensive line as middle of the road in run blocking and towards the bottom sixth of the league in pass protection. I like the line match ups for the Chiefs because I'm a firm believer that you blitz and pressure a young quarterback as much as possible in order to make him less effective. Hopefully, this game is a breakout game for Tamba Hali, who is still auditioning for the lead role in this Chiefs defense. ...

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