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Running wild

Quarterbacks putting up unprecedented rushing numbers

Two weeks in, I notice quarterbacks are running more. More yards and more touchdowns. Cam Newton has run for multiple touchdowns in both of his games. Kyler Murray and Dak Prescott have both run for 3 TDs. Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen haven’t gone crazy yet, but you know that they will.

No doubt things will even out. It’s a long season. But with each team having played two of its 16 games, the numbers are startling.

If teams continue at their current pace, quarterbacks will score 48 more rushing touchdowns than they ever have before in a season. And they’ll finish with over 1,400 more rushing yards.

With Jackson and Allen leading the way, the last two seasons have been the most run-heavy in league history, including going over 8,000 yards in 2018. But quarterbacks currently are on pace to finish with 9,432.

It’s a different game. The immobile pocket quarterbacks seem to be declining.

Below are the rushing stats for quarterbacks since the merger. For this year’s numbers, they’re projected out (as if teams continue to play as they have for the first two weeks, which won’t happen).

RUSHING BY QUARTERBACKS SINCE MERGER
YearAttYardsAvgTD
19706983,3204.826
19717653,2494.248
19729214,5955.062
19738973,7704.241
19748473,7054.449
19757833,5324.541
19769444,1914.459
19779173,3813.747
19781,0153,5493.537
19799813,9354.052
19801,0694,2634.058
19819793,6763.845
19825692,0013.525
19831,0684,1433.942
19841,1384,1243.647
19851,1383,9173.442
19861,1304,3063.843
19871,2255,1004.255
19881,2934,8943.860
19891,2785,2874.152
19901,3045,9124.543
19911,0973,8643.534
19921,2744,8683.833
19931,2474,2733.428
19941,1733,6853.139
19951,2394,0563.349
19961,3854,3913.244
19971,4345,1773.654
19981,4195,4593.849
19991,5375,9513.951
20001,7497,6164.460
20011,6956,5693.959
20021,6186,7134.173
20031,3944,8993.561
20041,4024,9573.539
20051,3854,5603.344
20061,4405,2143.644
20071,3054,0013.140
20081,3164,4413.448
20091,3364,2923.245
20101,4205,6594.046
20111,5726,0713.966
20121,5866,5774.166
20131,7077,3734.357
20141,6476,6464.047
20151,6306,5684.061
20161,5226,0033.965
20171,6507,1244.366
20181,8718,0864.371
20191,8257,6984.280
20202,1289,4324.4128

—Ian Allan

Fantasy Index