The Myth about the NFL Total Offense and Total Defense - Part 1

   You hear, or read,  the terms Total Offense and Total Defense used all the time buy sports writers who write about the NFL. Just turn on a NFL playoff game and you will hear the announcers, like Phil Simms, saying this team has the number one Offense or the number one Defense in the NFL. It seems incredible to me that there are so many people who say they do not know what this really means. These are people that watch NFL games all the time. If Phil Sims, or any other announcer says that New England has the number one offense people, just accept it as the truth. Is it really true?

   The answer to this question is Yes and NO! How can it be both yes and no,you ask? Well it really is no, let me explain.

The Yes

    The NFL defines Total Offense as yards gained and Total Defense as yards allowed. So when you read or hear about the number one offense it means that Denver, for example, simply gained the most yards or Seattle, for example, gave up the fewest yards on defense.
So when you read or hear about the NFL number one offense or defense they are telling the truth according to the NFL's version (Total Offense = Yards gained).

But is it really true?

The NO

    If you are an avid NFL fan you have heard about teams that move the ball with ease between the 20 Yard Lines but seem to have trouble scoring Touch Downs. This is why we hear about Red Zone statistics every game. Is not scoring points more important then just how many yards you gained? I have never heard of a game outcome being reported as
Indianapolis 425 yards to San Francisco 374 yards! It appears that points scored or allowed just might be more important than yards gained in determining which team has the number one offense or defense.

    I believe in trying to determine the Number One Offense or Defense that using just one statistic does not tell the whole picture. I believe that these writers and announcers are not lying but they just have not found a place where the full truth is told, But I HAVE!

Pro Football Ranking.com

    A website that uses fifteen stats on offense and fifteen stats on defense to determine the ranking of all thirty two NFL teams each week. A website that also compares points scored\allowed rankings, yards gained\allowed, rankings , and their ranking method all in one place, and more.

   In my next post, Part 2,  I will discuss other statistics that are important to use in determining which team ranks as number one and why they should be considered.

Phil, if you read this, please try to get your facts right!

https://twitter.com/profootballrank


   Well am I right or what? Let me know!