Research and Doug: Week 17
Jan 6, 2016, 2:30 PM
Arizona Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer (3) throws against the Seattle Seahawks during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Jan. 3, 2016, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
(AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
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 the NFL and college football that I’m using on the show this week. It’s Research and Doug.
1) In the twelve games against NFL teams not from Seattle, Arizona gave up 17.5 points per game but the Seahawks average 34 points per game when they play the Cardinals. — me
2) For the 26th straight year, at least four NFL teams made the playoffs that missed the postseason the year before. — NFL press release
3) Carson Palmer went 1-of-7 (14.3%) with an interception on passes thrown 15+ yards downfield against Seattle, his worst downfield percentage since Week 6 of 2013 (1-of-8). — ESPN Stats & Info
4) The last five coaching changes made in the AFC North were all made by Cleveland. — ESPN Stats & Info
5) In the years before and after Jim Harbaugh was head coach, the 49ers lost 21 games but the five years with Harbaugh San Francisco lost only 19. — ESPN Radio
6) For the first time in his career, Tom Brady enters the playoffs on a two-game losing streak. — ESPN Stats & Info
7) The Redskins are the first road team to lead by a shut-out score of at least 21-0 at the end of the first quarter against Dallas since Jim Brown scored a TD to help the 1961 Cleveland Browns to a 21-0 lead. –ESPN Stats & Info
8) In the two Jets’ losses to Buffalo, Ryan Fitzpatrick completed 39 percent of his passes with no touchdowns and five interceptions when the Bills sent four or fewer pass rushers. — ESPN Stats & Info
9) Russell Wilson went 5-of-6 to Doug Baldwin against Arizona, finishing the season with an 80.4 completion percentage to the receiver, the highest QB-WR combo completion percentage in the last 10 years. –ESPN Stats & Info
10) In Cincinnati, the play-action pass from A. J. to A. J. went for eight completions in eight targets for 90 yards and a touchdown on the season. — ESPN Stats & Info
11) Since the 2011 draft that produced J. J. Watt, the NFL has had eight games where one player earned multiple sacks and multiple batted passes in the same game. Watt has four such games and the rest of the league has four. — ESPN Stats & Info
12) Russell Wilson is the first player in NFL history to record 4,000 passing yards, 30 passing touchdowns & 500 rushing yards in a single season. — ESPN Stats & Info
13) Cam Newton is the only player in NFL history with at least 30 passing touchdowns and 10 rushing touchdowns in a single season. — NFL press release
14) Drew Brees has 96 games of at least 300 yards, the most in NFL history. — NFL press release
15) In his first 65 games, Julio Jones has 24 more receptions than any other receiver in the history of the game achieved in their first 65 games. — Elias
16) The only quarterback to lead the league six times in passing yards for a season is Drew Brees. — NFL press release
17) In the first 95 years of NFL football, two players finished a season with 1,800 or more receiving yards. In 2015, Julio Jones and Antonio Brown did it. — ESPN Stats & Info
