I was poking around with some of the numbers – looking not so much at the conference championship games, but compiling numbers that can be used in research for the 2018 season (yes, we’re moving into that time). But as I look at passing performance inside the 10, the numbers might also shed some light on our championship games.
How bad is Blake Bortles? At times he looks pretty awful (never more so than in the playoff game against Buffalo). But overall his numbers have been pretty good, and he’s been remarkably good in crucial situations.
Inside the 10, Bortles completed 22 of 35 passes, with 14 TDs and 3 two-point conversions. Giving up no sacks or interceptions in that part of the field, he successfully put the ball in the end zone on just under half of his plays. Only one offense was more effective in that part of the field, and it was powered by a quarterback (Carson Wentz) who’s now out for the year.
Not that Bortles is Superman, but I think he at least must be given a puncher’s chance in this game.
Tom Brady, by the way, also has been outstanding in this part of the field.
Six teams were able to get the ball in the end zone on under a quarter of their plays, and they’ve all got new head coaches or new offensive coordinators. Specifically, Marcus Mariota has been very good in this part of the field in the past, and the Titans were pretty awful – 7 of 19, with 4 TDs and a sack.
Here are the team numbers, with the remaining playoff teams in bold.
| PASSING OFFENSE INSIDE 10 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | Com | Att | TD-2pt | EZ% | Int | Sack |
| Philadelphia | 24 | 35 | 16-4 | 57.1% | 0 | 0 |
| Jacksonville | 22 | 36 | 14-3 | 47.2% | 0 | 0 |
| Cincinnati | 16 | 25 | 13 | 46.4% | 1 | 3 |
| New England | 21 | 37 | 16-2 | 43.9% | 0 | 4 |
| Houston | 18 | 34 | 14-1 | 42.9% | 1 | 1 |
| Oakland | 14 | 31 | 11-2 | 41.9% | 0 | 0 |
| Seattle | 24 | 46 | 17-2 | 41.3% | 0 | 0 |
| Miami | 20 | 36 | 15 | 39.5% | 2 | 2 |
| LA Rams | 21 | 35 | 14 | 38.9% | 0 | 1 |
| Detroit | 19 | 36 | 13-2 | 38.5% | 0 | 3 |
| Kansas City | 12 | 25 | 10 | 37.0% | 1 | 2 |
| Baltimore | 20 | 38 | 13-1 | 36.8% | 0 | 0 |
| Green Bay | 17 | 33 | 11-1 | 36.4% | 1 | 0 |
| Minnesota | 17 | 30 | 11-1 | 36.4% | 0 | 3 |
| Pittsburgh | 23 | 46 | 15-2 | 35.4% | 1 | 2 |
| Carolina | 15 | 28 | 10 | 34.5% | 0 | 1 |
| New Orleans | 21 | 30 | 11 | 34.4% | 0 | 2 |
| Atlanta | 18 | 35 | 12 | 33.3% | 1 | 1 |
| NY Giants | 17 | 29 | 11 | 33.3% | 0 | 4 |
| Dallas | 13 | 31 | 10 | 31.3% | 1 | 1 |
| Tampa Bay | 14 | 34 | 10-1 | 30.6% | 0 | 2 |
| LA Chargers | 21 | 46 | 14 | 30.4% | 1 | 0 |
| Denver | 15 | 32 | 8-2 | 28.6% | 2 | 3 |
| Washington | 9 | 26 | 7 | 25.9% | 1 | 1 |
| Buffalo | 16 | 34 | 9 | 25.7% | 2 | 1 |
| San Francisco | 13 | 38 | 10 | 25.0% | 2 | 2 |
| Cleveland | 11 | 26 | 6 | 22.2% | 4 | 1 |
| Chicago | 11 | 29 | 6 | 20.0% | 1 | 1 |
| Tennessee | 7 | 19 | 4 | 20.0% | 0 | 1 |
| NY Jets | 12 | 27 | 5 | 18.5% | 0 | 0 |
| Indianapolis | 4 | 18 | 3 | 13.6% | 1 | 4 |
| Arizona | 13 | 26 | 2-1 | 10.7% | 2 | 2 |
Looking at the same numbers for defenses, the Vikings really stand out. They were remarkably tough in that part of the field. Inside the 10, opposing quarterbacks put the ball into the end zone on only 4 of 33 pass plays against them – 9 of 31, with 3 TDs, a 2-point conversion and 2 sacks.
That’s a really good defense, and I’m expecting they’ll hold the Eagles under 20 points today.
Jacksonville has a good defense – a great one – but it allowed touchdown passes on 32 percent of its plays in that part of the field. That’s barely above average. But also note that opponents didn’t pass much against them, with a league-low 8 completions.
| PASSING DEFENSE INSIDE 10 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | Com | Att | TD-2pt | EZ% | Int | Sack |
| Minnesota | 9 | 31 | 3-1 | 12.1% | 0 | 2 |
| Buffalo | 10 | 33 | 6 | 16.7% | 0 | 3 |
| New Orleans | 14 | 34 | 7-1 | 22.2% | 2 | 2 |
| Baltimore | 10 | 25 | 6 | 23.1% | 4 | 1 |
| NY Giants | 19 | 48 | 12 | 24.5% | 0 | 1 |
| Oakland | 19 | 29 | 8 | 25.8% | 1 | 2 |
| Pittsburgh | 12 | 28 | 8-1 | 30.0% | 1 | 2 |
| Arizona | 15 | 31 | 10 | 30.3% | 1 | 2 |
| Philadelphia | 14 | 32 | 10 | 30.3% | 0 | 1 |
| LA Chargers | 9 | 22 | 6-1 | 30.4% | 0 | 1 |
| Tampa Bay | 14 | 25 | 8 | 30.8% | 1 | 1 |
| New England | 24 | 44 | 13-1 | 31.1% | 2 | 1 |
| Chicago | 14 | 30 | 9-1 | 31.3% | 0 | 2 |
| Jacksonville | 8 | 19 | 5-1 | 31.6% | 1 | 0 |
| LA Rams | 15 | 29 | 10 | 32.3% | 0 | 2 |
| Cincinnati | 14 | 33 | 11 | 33.3% | 1 | 0 |
| Carolina | 13 | 29 | 10-1 | 33.3% | 0 | 4 |
| Washington | 20 | 41 | 12-2 | 34.1% | 2 | 0 |
| Kansas City | 14 | 31 | 10-1 | 34.4% | 0 | 1 |
| Atlanta | 14 | 28 | 9-1 | 34.5% | 0 | 1 |
| Tennessee | 23 | 48 | 18 | 34.6% | 0 | 4 |
| Denver | 14 | 30 | 12 | 37.5% | 3 | 2 |
| Indianapolis | 23 | 43 | 14-4 | 40.0% | 0 | 2 |
| Miami | 16 | 30 | 13 | 40.6% | 0 | 2 |
| Seattle | 9 | 12 | 5 | 41.7% | 0 | 0 |
| Detroit | 19 | 28 | 12-1 | 41.9% | 2 | 3 |
| San Francisco | 22 | 38 | 15-2 | 43.6% | 2 | 1 |
| NY Jets | 27 | 41 | 18 | 43.9% | 2 | 0 |
| Houston | 16 | 32 | 14-1 | 45.5% | 0 | 1 |
| Cleveland | 22 | 35 | 16-1 | 45.9% | 0 | 2 |
| Green Bay | 24 | 36 | 15-2 | 47.2% | 0 | 0 |
| Dallas | 22 | 36 | 16-2 | 47.4% | 0 | 2 |
—Ian Allan