Fantasy News
More on stats that are going across my desk as we do some preliminary work on the 2008 edition of FANTASY FOOTBALL INDEX. Four teams that really struggled to run the ball inside the red zone last year:
St. Louis: The Rams gained only 42 yards on 47 rushing plays inside the 20 last year. That’s less than a yard per carry. Each of the league’s other 31 teams averaged at least twice as many yards per carry. Injuries to Steven Jackson and Orlando Pace, of course, didn’t help.
Kansas City: The NFL’s other team in Missouri didn’t fare much better, averaging only 1.9 yards per attempt. Larry Johnson is one of the league’s best running backs, but he simply didn’t get enough room to operate last season. Kansas City has since fired offensive coordinator Mike Solari, and it will try to upgrade/rebuild its offensive line.
Buffalo: The Bills, with a revamped offensive line and a new running back (Marshawn Lynch) made a strong effort to run the ball in that part of the field. Only two teams (Titans, Bucs) ran the ball on a higher percentage of plays inside the 20. But it didn’t work out. Buffalo averaged only 1.8 yards per rushing attempt inside the 20, 2nd-worst in the league. Only 5 TDs in 57 rushing plays as well.
San Francisco: The 49ers were the fourth team that averaged under 2 yards per carry inside the red zone last season. San Francisco’s offense was generally inept in that area – and all over the field. Hard to believe Frank Gore was so effective two years ago. In 2007, San Francisco ran the ball a league-low 38 times inside the 20, and gained only 71 yards on those attempts, with 6 TDs.
The five teams that average more than 3.0 yards per attempt on rushing plays inside the red zone: Minnesota, Indianapolis, Tampa Bay, Miami (yes, Miami), and Dallas.
--Ian Allan
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