Research & Doug Week 5: Interesting football facts from Doug Franz and elsewhere

Every week, as part of my show prep (and because I’m genuinely interested), I read
through as many research notes I can find. Sometimes I research my own stats to see
if there’s a statistical trend that backs up what I think I’m seeing when I watch games.
Unfortunately for my time efficiency, occasionally those stats show me nothing and I
throw them out.

Here are the stats (or interesting tidbits) from last week in the NFL in Research & Doug.

1) Since the current playoff format at was adopted by the NFL, 4-1 teams have a 77%
chance of making the playoffs. (ESPN Stats & Info)

2) Rashad Johnson has more interceptions than the Seattle Seahawks…and 9 other
teams. (Me)

3) The first quarterback in the 69-year history of the Cleveland Browns to throw for 300
yards in three straight games is Josh McCown. (CBS broadcast)

4) Every team since 1975 to score 100 more points than they allow through the first
five games has played in the Super Bowl except this year’s Arizona Cardinals. (Cardinals press release)

5) Russell Wilson has been sacked a league-high 22 times. (Peter King’s MMQB)

6) The last time the Cardinals scored 28 points in a quarter was 1987 when St. Louis
trailed Tampa Bay 28-3 and came back with four TDs in the fourth quarter. Ron
Wolfley contributed 2 yards towards the victory. (Cardinals press release and me
looking up the game)

7) Peyton Manning has six touchdown passes and seven interceptions while leading the 29th-best passing offense. (John Clayton)

8) David Johnson is the first rookie since Pro Football Hall of Famer Gale Sayers
(1965) to have multiple rushing touchdowns, multiple receiving TDs and a kickoff return
touchdown in his team’s first five games of a season. (NFL press release)

9) Arizona Cardinals have seven rushing touchdowns. Last year they had six. (Cardinals press release)

10) Peyton Manning is averaging 6.5 yards per attempt, the lowest mark of his career. (ESPN Stats & Info)

11) Matthew Stafford had only 27 more yards passing than Carson Palmer and it took
Stafford 18 more attempts. (My math skills)

12) With :54 seconds remaining in the first half in Cincinnati, the vaunted “Legion of
Boom” grabbed their first interception of 2015. (FOX broadcast)

13) Bruce Arians is 5-8 versus the NFC West and 19-4 against all other divisions.
(Cardinals press release)

14) Atlanta RB Devonta Freeman has more rushing TDs in his first three starts than any player in the Super Bowl era. (NFL press release)

15) The last time the Cardinals had three games of forty points in the same season, Doug, Spade and the young crunk behind the glass weren’t born yet…and Wolf was
in Kindergarten. (Cardinals press release)

16) Four days after turning 39, Oakland DB Charles Woodson became the oldest player in NFL history to pick off two passes in one game. (NFL press release)

17) Russell Wilson threw only his third career red-zone interception Sunday. (FOX
broadcast)

18) Robert Alford’s overtime pick-6 to beat Washington was the longest walk-off INT
return since 1995 when Lorenzo Lynch had a 72-yard return for the Arizona
Cardinals. (NFL press release)

19) The Ravens defense gave up 505 yards of offense to the Cleveland Browns. (Peter
King’s MMQB)

20) The Dolphins have a “head coach” younger than two NFL starting quarterbacks who earned victories in Week 5 (Peyton Manning and Matt Hasselbeck). (Peter King’s MMQB)

21) Despite not having Josh Gordon for the year, the Browns throw on 72% of their plays. (Peter King’s MMQB)

22) Only two players since the Super Bowl era have thrown for 100 yards, rushed for 70 yards and caught a pass in the same game: Randall Cunningham and Tyrod Taylor, who did it Sunday vs. Tennessee. (NFL press release)

23) The Cardinals have scored 23 more points through their first five games than their
previous record of 167 points in 1948. (Cardinals press release)

24) Andy Dalton leads the NFL in passing yardage. (I was surprised when I was looking up something else and thought it was interesting)

25) Chris Johnson is the NFL’s second leading rusher. (Cardinals press release)

26) The Colts have won a record 16 straight divisional games. (Elias)

27) Alex Smith completed 22% of his passes after Jamaal Charles tore his ACL. (ESPN Stats & Info)

28) Before Sunday, Seattle’s last 17-point blown lead was 2004. (ESPN Stats & Info)

29) The Atlanta Falcons have three defensive touchdowns this year after getting two last year. (ESPN Stats & Info)

30) Tyrod Taylor has five rushes of 20 yards or more; all other NFL QBs have four. (ESPN Stats & Info)

31) Tom Brady was sacked five times in the first half against Dallas but wasn’t pressured in the second half. (ESPN Stats & Info)

32) Peyton Manning threw three interceptions on third down last year. He’s thrown four on third down this year. (ESPN Stats & Info)

33) Charles Woodson picked off Peyton Manning for the first time, 17 years after being in the same draft class. (ESPN Stats & Info)

34) The 49ers blitzed on only 9% of Eli Manning’s drops. Manning threw for 400 yards against four or less pass rushers and set a Giants record with 41 completions. (ESPN Stats & Info)

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