Most important Stat....Yards per Pass Attempt (NFL)

[DJlaysitup]

Back when I lived in Denver (during the later Elway years) I was friends with an old grumudgeon...Joe Williams...a radio sportstalk fella. He once told me over a drink "son, the NFL is a passing league and the most important staistic as far as passing goes is yards per attempt".

Things have likely changed a bit - what with more of the mobile QBs coming into the league (and fading nearly as fast)...but I think it's still a very important statistic to follow. It takes into account the differences between the "long ball-low completion percentage guys as well as the high %age short throwers".

Last year Matt Ryan was #7 on the YPA stat and we almost went to the Superbowl. This year he is #16 and we ain't going nowhere but the draft. Much of this has to do with his deep threats going down to injury.

But the stat is still the stat...make your bets accordingly

[macdaddy]

I can't believe he was #7 last year.

[PSSSHHHRRR87]

Kevin Love leads the NBA in yards per pass.

But on a serious note, yes, injuries to Roddy and Jones have played major roles in Ryan's performance this year, but the makeshift O-line is a bigger problem. Also, the average rank of defense Ryan faced last season was 19th. This year the average ranked defense faced is 11th. Carolina is 2nd and Seattle is 3rd. Nawlin's D is much better since Rob Ryan took over. A combo of injuries, competition, and complete disregard of the lack of talent on the O-line is why the Falcons are scoring an entire touchdown less in points this season (From 26.2 ppg in 2012 to 20.7 ppg in 2013). Also, bringing in S-Jax was a waste of money and the keys need to be given to the Rodgers/Snelling duo full time next season. A few bright points to this clusterf*ck of a season is that we'll end up with a top 5 pick AND w/ Gonzo, S-Jax, and Osi will be off the books, so we'll have plenty of cap at TD's disposal to rework our lines. We also found a diamond in the rough w/ Worrilow. Dude would tackle his grandmother if she was holding a football. 2014 will be better guys... I hope.

[Admin]

Jay Cutler 15th, Andrew Luck 18th, Tom Brady 27th and Alex Smith 29th. And they all have pretty darn good teams. So I don't buy that this stat really means any more than any other stat.

[EazyRoc]

Kevin Love leads the NBA in yards per pass. But on a serious note, yes, injuries to Roddy and Jones have played major roles in Ryan's performance this year, but the makeshift O-line is a bigger problem. Also, the average rank of defense Ryan faced last season was 19th. This year the average ranked defense faced is 11th. Carolina is 2nd and Seattle is 3rd. Nawlin's D is much better since Rob Ryan took over. A combo of injuries, competition, and complete disregard of the lack of talent on the O-line is why the Falcons are scoring an entire touchdown less in points this season (From 26.2 ppg in 2012 to 20.7 ppg in 2013). Also, bringing in S-Jax was a waste of money and the keys need to be given to the Rodgers/Snelling duo full time next season. A few bright points to this clusterf*ck of a season is that we'll end up with a top 5 pick AND w/ Gonzo, S-Jax, and Osi will be off the books, so we'll have plenty of cap at TD's disposal to rework our lines. We also found a diamond in the rough w/ Worrilow. Dude would tackle his grandmother if she was holding a football. 2014 will be better guys... I hope.

I hope we resign Osi. He's quietly been pretty good

[benhillboy]

Coaching staffs know the best position to put their QBs in. Guys with average arms or poor downfield stats (Smith, Brady) are in short passing offenses to protect the ball and limit wasted attempts. Makes sense, but the numbers might be skewed a bit with the WR screen becoming en vouge. I should know this, but does it account for YAC or just yards traveled concerning the pass from QB to target? A well defended screen to Harry Douglas nets -1 yard. A well-designed and timed one to Demaryus Thomas could go fiddy.

Edited November 21, 2013 by benhillboy