Factoid
The Lions got rid of Mike Martz, and that definitely will help their running game.
As the league’s ultimate mad-scientist play-caller in recent years, Martz lost it somewhere along the line. He doesn’t call enough running plays.
Detroit ranked last and next-to-last in the two seasons that Martz was running the offense. Part of that failure you might attribute to inadequate personnel at tailback and on the offensive line. A much larger share of the blame, however, falls on Martz, who tends to go crazy with calling pass plays.
With Martz at coordinator, the Lions two years in a row ran the highest percentage of pass plays in the league, while being overly neglectful of his running game. Considering the following charts, which show average rushing attempts by teams in two-year blocks since the league went to the 16-game schedule in 1978.
MOST RUSHING PLAYS IN BACK-TO-BACK SEASONS IN LAST 30 YEARS
The top 10 (out of 793 teams), which average carries per game (9-game season of 1982 not included):
Att Per Game
40.1 Chicago Bears (1984-1985)
39.8 New England Patriots (1978-1979)
39.4 Chicago Bears (1978-1979)
39.3 Chicago Bears (1983-1984)
38.5 Kansas City (1978-1979)
38.3 Dallas Cowboys (1980-1981)
38.1 Houston Oilers (1978-1979)
38.0 Washington (1983-1984)
38.0 Chicago Bears (1985-1986)
37.7 Los Angeles Rams (1979-1980)
FEWEST RUSHING PLAYS IN BACK-TO-BACK SEASONS IN LAST 30 YEARS
The bottom 10 (out of 793 teams), which average carries per game (9-game season of 1982 not included):
Att Per Game
21.5 Indianapolis Colts (1990-1991)
21.5 Oakland Raiders (2004-2005)
21.4 Houston Oilers (1991-1992)
21.0 Atlanta Falcons (1987-1988)
20.8 Atlanta Falcons (1994-1995)
20.8 Atlanta Falcons (1995-1996)
20.6 Houston Oilers (1990-1991)
20.3 Cleveland Browns (1999-2000)
19.9 Atlanta Falcons (1988-1989)
19.6 Detroit Lions (2006-2007)
So Detroit’s new offensive coordinator, Jim Colletto, doesn’t have to be a miracle worker. Just by being there and calling a lot more running plays, Detroit’s running game is going to be a lot better.
And just maybe, Tatum Bell will finally come through and deliver those big rushing numbers that we all know he’s capable of. For those who missed it, Bell told The Detroit News a few weeks back that he expects to have a big season. “I think I can get 1,300 yards,” he said. “That’s my goal -- at least 1,300, 15 touchdowns. I know it’s reachable.”
—Ian Allan
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Posted by Tod Denison | Apr. 05 at 12:15 PM
The question is how does Frank Gore perform this year based on Martz play-calling? I still believe that Gore will get rushing TD's (as Martz will run the ball around the goal line), but 100 yard games might be questionable.
Posted by IAN ALLAN | Apr. 05 at 03:18 PM
I wouldn't give up on Gore. His rushing yards will be down, but I think he'll catch plenty of passes. He has good hands, and Martz does like to use his backs in that capacity (Kevin Jones, I believe, averaged about 40 receiving yards per game two years ago in that offense). And for being such a pass-happy guy, Martz flipflops and uses the run a lot around the goal line. The Lions, for example, ran the ball on two thirds of their plays inside the 5 last year, which was the 3rd-highest rate in the league. Gore could be OK.