99 Stats Until Kickoff (#94) When was the last time your team drafted a QB in the first round?
From May 30 and every day until September 5… the start of the 2013 NFL season… Sports Stats ‘on Tapp’ will publish “99 Stats Until Kickoff” a daily dose of NFL stats that will get you ready for the 2013 NFL season.)
Robert Griffin III (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The 2012 NFL draft included four quarterbacks selected in the first round: Andrew Luck (Indianapolis), Robert Griffin III (Washington), Ryan Tannehill (Miami) and Brandon Weeden (Cleveland). That was the 11th straight year that at least two QBs were taken in the first round. The 2013 NFL draft, however, featured only one QB taken in the first round, E.J. Manuel by the Buffalo Bills, thus breaking that 11-year streak.
For some teams, taking a quarterback in the first round has been a long time ago. Consider the New Orleans Saints. The Saints last took a QB in the first round back in 1971 when they selected Archie Manning. With Drew Brees at the helm, it probably won’t be anytime soon that they use their first round pick on a QB.
Following are the years each of the NFL teams last drafted a quarterback in the first round.
Last year drafted QB in first round, team(s)
1971: New Orleans (Archie Manning)
1983: Kansas City (Todd Blackledge)
1989: Dallas (Troy Aikman/a)
1993: New England (Drew Bledsoe); Seattle (Rick Mirer)
1999: Philadelphia (Donovan McNabb/b)
2002: Houston (David Carr)
2003: Chicago (Rex Grossman); Cincinnati (Carson Palmer)
2004: New York Giants (Philip Rivers); Pittsburgh (Ben Roethlisberger); San Diego (Eli Manning)
2005: Green Bay (Aaron Rodgers); San Francisco (Alex Smith)
2006: Arizona (Matt Leinart)
2007: Oakland (JaMarcus Russell)
2008: Atlanta (Matt Ryan); Baltimore (Joe Flacco)
2009: Detroit (Matt Stafford); New York Jets (Mark Sanchez); Tampa Bay (Josh Freeman)
2010: Denver (Tim Tebow); St. Louis (Sam Bradford)
2011: Carolina (Cam Newton); Jacksonville (Blaine Gabbert); Minnesota (Christian Ponder); Tennessee (Jake Locker)
2012: Cleveland (Brandon Weeden); Indianapolis (Andrew Luck); Miami (Ryan Tannehill); Washington (Robert Griffin III)
2013: Buffalo (E.J. Manuel)
(/a) The Cowboys drafted Quincy Carter with their first pick in 2001, but that pick was a second round selection
(/)b The Eagles drafted Kevin Kolb with their first pick in 2007, but that pick was a second round selection
Here’s a few more notes regarding quarterbacks taken in the first round:
- The last time only one QB was taken in the first round prior to the 2013 draft was 2001 when the Atlanta Falcons drafted Michael Vick.
- The last time no quarterbacks were chosen in the first round was 1996. The first QB taken that year was in the second round when Tony Banks was chosen by the St. Louis Rams.
- The last year where no QB was selected in the first two rounds was 1988.
Most quarterbacks taken in the first round was six in 1983. That draft class included Hall of Famers John Elway, Jim Kelly and Dan Marino. Also chosen in the first round that year was Todd Blackledge, Tony Eason and Ken O’Brien.
“99 Stats Before Kickoff” (Stats you need to know before the start of the 2013 NFL season) is available from e-book publisher Smashwords. Go to www.smashwords.com to download a copy, including a pdf version which can be viewed on your home computer. Cost is $2.99.
99 Stats Until Kickoff (#93) When was the last time your team won a playoff game?
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From May 30 and every day until September 5… the start of the 2013 NFL season… Sports Stats ‘on Tapp’ will publish “99 Stats Until Kickoff” a daily dose of NFL stats that will get you ready for the 2013 NFL season.)
The Cincinnati Bengals had a chance this past year to end a 21-year drought with a win in the playoffs when they faced off against the Houston Texans in an AFC Wild Card game. The Bengals have not won a playoff game since 1990.
The Texans beat the Bengals in that Wild Card contest, thus extending Cincinnati’s streak of consecutive seasons without winning a playoff game to 22 years, the longest current wait for a post-season win in the NFL.
There are now nine teams that have not won a playoff game in 10 years or more. The Tennessee Titans joined that list this past season when they failed to make the 2012 playoffs. Their last playoff win was after the 2003 season.
Here’s a look at the last time each of the 32 NFL teams won a playoff game.
Last season they won a playoff game, team
1990: Cincinnati
1991: Detroit
1993: Kansas City
1994: Cleveland
1995: Buffalo
2000: Miami
2002: Oakland, Tampa Bay
2003: Tennessee
2004: St. Louis
2005: Carolina, Washington
2007: Jacksonville
2008: Philadelphia, San Diego
2009: Arizona, Dallas, Minnesota, Indianapolis
2010: Chicago, N.Y. Jets, Pittsburgh
2011: Denver, New Orleans, N.Y. Giants
2012: Atlanta, Baltimore, Green Bay, Houston, New England, San Francisco, Seattle
“99 Stats Before Kickoff” (Stats you need to know before the start of the 2013 NFL season) is available from e-book publisher Smashwords. Go to www.smashwords.com to download a copy, including a pdf version which can be viewed on your home computer. Cost is $2.99.
Schedule and ‘Hard Knocks’ a good omen for Cincinnati Bengals?
If you are a Cincinnati Bengals fan, the following two items will be of special interest to you… especially if you think your team has a shot at finally winning a playoff game and advancing deep into the NFL playoffs.
Rey Maualuga of the Cincinnati Bengals. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
2013 games versus 2012 playoff teams. Each of the 32 NFL teams will play between five and seven games this season against teams that made the playoffs last year. In fact, 11 teams will play seven games against ’12 playoff teams, nine will play six games against last year’s playoff teams, and 12 teams will face off against playoff teams from last year five times.
Here’s a look at how many teams from last year’s playoffs each team will play this year (included in parenthesis are the number of home games and away games versus these playoff teams).
Seven games this year versus 2012 playoff teams: Baltimore (five home, two away); Cleveland (two home, five away); Houston (four home, three away); Jacksonville (three home, four away); Pittsburgh (two home, five away); Arizona (five home, two away); Chicago (four home, three away); Detroit (four home, three away); Green Bay (three home, four away); St. Louis (two home, five away); San Francisco (five home, two away).
Six games this year versus 2012 playoff teams: Cincinnati (five home, one away); Indianapolis (three home, three away); Miami (four home, two away); San Diego (four home, two away); Tennessee (two home, four away); Carolina (three home, three away); Minnesota (two home, four away); New York Giants (five home, one away); Seattle (two home, four away).
Five games this year versus 2012 playoff teams: Buffalo (four home, one away); Denver (two home, three away); Kansas City (three home, two away); New England (one home, four away); New York Jets (one home, four away); Oakland (two home, three away); Atlanta (three home, two away); Dallas (four home, one away); New Orleans (two home, three away); Philadelphia (one home, four away); Tampa Bay (two home, three away); Washington (one home, four away).
So does the above list favor (or not favor) any teams? Here’s a few observations:
* Five teams will play five games at home against 2012 playoff teams: Baltimore, Cincinnati, Arizona, New York Giants and San Francisco. Of those five, the Bengals and Giants will only have to play one 2012 playoff team on the road.
* Of the 12 teams that play only five games against last year’s playoff teams, Buffalo and Dallas play four of those five games at home.
* Four teams play only one game at home against a playoff team from last year: New England, New York Jets, Philadelphia and Washington. All four of them will play four games on the road against playoff teams from last year.
* Of the 11 teams that will play seven games against 2012 playoff teams this year, three teams (Cleveland, Pittsburgh and St. Louis) will play five of those seven on the road.
Hard Knocks. If you are a football fan and have HBO, you have probably been watching this year’s version of “Hard Knocks,” starring the Cincinnati Bengals. This is the Bengals’ second time on the popular HBO show (they first appeared in 2009).
So here’s the question… is having your team appear on this show good for the team (in terms of record, playoff appearance, etc.)?
This is the eighth season of the show. Here’s a quick rundown of which teams appeared on the show that started in 2001: Baltimore (2001), Dallas (2002), Kansas City (2007), Dallas (2008), Cincinnati (2009); New York Jets (2010), Miami (2012) and Cincinnati (2013).
We looked at the record of those teams appearing on Hard Knocks in the seasons prior to, during and after they were the focus of the show. Here are some of those stats.
The season before they appeared on Hard Knocks: The eight teams were a combined 68-59-1 (a .535 winning percentage) in the season prior to Hard Knocks. Five of the eight teams made the playoffs. Five of the eight had winning records.
The season they appeared on Hard Knocks: The previous seven teams prior to this year’s Bengals appearance were a combined 56-56 (a .500 winning percentage) in the season they appeared on Hard Knocks. Only three of the seven made the playoffs. Of the seven teams, three had a worse record the year they appeared on Hard Knocks than the previous year, one had the same record, and three had a better record. The last three teams to appear on Hard Knocks (Cincinnati (2009), New York Jets (2010) and Miami (2012) had a better record during their Hard Knocks season than the previous year.
The season after they appeared on Hard Knocks: The six teams that have already played a season after their Hard Knocks appearance were a combined 42-54 the next season (a .438 winning percentage). Only two of the six made the playoffs the year after they appeared on Hard Knocks.
Hang on Bengals’ fans, this could get interesting.
99 Stats Until Kickoff (#92) When was the last time your team won a divisional title?
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From May 30 and every day until September 5… the start of the 2013 NFL season… Sports Stats ‘on Tapp’ will publish “99 Stats Until Kickoff” a daily dose of NFL stats that will get you ready for the 2013 NFL season.)
Of the eight NFL teams that won divisional titles this season, six of them also won that division title in 2011. The two teams that went to the top of their division this year (but not in 2011) were the Atlanta Falcons and Washington Redskins.
The Falcons last won the NFC South in 2010. For the Redskins, this past season’s divisional title was a long time coming. The Redskins last won a division in 1999; that drought was tied for the fourth longest in the league.
Back in 2002, the NFL went to the current four divisions in each of the two conferences format. Of the 32 NFL teams, 28 have now won at least one division title since ’02. The four that are still looking for their first division championship this century are: Buffalo, Cleveland, Detroit and Jacksonville. Browns‘ fans have been waiting the longest as their team has not won a division championship since 1989.
Following is a look at when each NFL team last won a division title.
Year of last division title, team(s)
1989: Cleveland
1993: Detroit
1995: Buffalo
1999: Jacksonville
2002: N.Y. Jets, Oakland
2003: St. Louis
2007: Tampa Bay
2008: Carolina, Miami, Tennessee
2009: Arizona, Cincinnati, Dallas, Minnesota, San Diego,
2010: Chicago, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Seattle
2011: New Orleans, N.Y Giants
2012: Atlanta, Baltimore, Denver, Green Bay, Houston, New England, San Francisco, Washington
“99 Stats Before Kickoff” (Stats you need to know before the start of the 2013 NFL season) is available from e-book publisher Smashwords. Go to www.smashwords.com to download a copy, including a pdf version which can be viewed on your home computer. Cost is $2.99.
99 Stats Until Kickoff (#91) When was the last time your team was shutout in a game?
Denver Broncos logo (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
From May 30 and every day until September 5… the start of the 2013 NFL season… Sports Stats ‘on Tapp’ will publish “99 Stats Until Kickoff” a daily dose of NFL stats that will get you ready for the 2013 NFL season.)
Since 2000, there have been 105 shutouts in the NFL. Last season there were six, with Miami, Kansas City, the New York Giants, Tampa Bay, Arizona and the New York Jets being held scoreless in a game in 2012.
For the Giants, their shutout on December 16 by the score of 34-0 to the Atlanta Falcons was their first shutout since December 1, 1996, a stretch of over 16 years. Prior to last season, it was the third longest timeframe without being shutout in the league.
The Denver Broncos are the NFL franchise that has the longest time span since their last shutout. The last time the Broncos were shutout was November 22, 1992, when they lost 24-0 to the Raiders. With the addition of Peyton Manning at QB last season, you have to wonder if that streak will continue to grow as long as Manning is at the helm. Manning’s Colts were never shutout in a regular-season game during his career in Indianapolis. They did lose one playoff game in January 2003 to the New York Jets, 41-0.
The fewest shutouts since 2000 was four in 2004, while the most shutouts in a season since 2000 were 15 in the 2006 regular season.
Following is the last time each of the NFL teams was shutout in a regular season game.
Year, team (date of shutout)
1992: Denver Broncos (11/22)
1993: Indianapolis Colts (12/2)
1999: San Diego Chargers (10/31)
2002: New Orleans Saints (1/6); Baltimore Ravens (9/15); Carolina Panthers (11/24); Chicago Bears (12/29)
2003: Dallas Cowboys (11/16); Houston Texans (12/7)
2004: Atlanta Falcons (12/5)
2006: Green Bay Packers (11/19); Pittsburgh Steelers (11/26); New England Patriots (12/10)
2007: Minnesota Vikings (11/11)
2008: Buffalo Bills (12/28)
2009: Cincinnati Bengals (1/3); Jacksonville Jaguars (10/11); Detroit Lions (10/18); Cleveland Browns (11/16)
2010: Philadelphia Eagles (1/3); San Francisco 49ers (11/21); Tennessee Titans (11/28)
2011: Seattle Seahawks (9/18); Oakland Raiders (10/23); Washington Redskins (10/30); St. Louis Rams (12/24)
2012: New York Jets (9/30); Arizona (12/9); Tampa Bay (12/16); N.Y. Giants (12/16); Kansas City (12/16); Miami Dolphins (12/30)
Following are the number of times since 2000 that each team has been shutout.
11: Cleveland
8: Miami
7: Cincinnati
6: Oakland
5: Buffalo, N.Y. Jets, St. Louis, Washington
4: Dallas, Kansas City, Pittsburgh, San Francisco, Tampa Bay
3: Arizona, Chicago, Detroit, Philadelphia, Seattle, Tennessee
2: Atlanta, Carolina, Green Bay, Jacksonville, New England
1: Baltimore, Houston, Minnesota, New Orleans, N.Y. Giants
0: Denver, Indianapolis, San Diego
Just in case you were wondering, the defensive team with the most shutouts since 2000 are the Baltimore Ravens with nine. The Seahawks, Steelers and Patriots have each won with eight shutouts since 2000, and Tampa Bay have seven shutouts. Five different teams have not had a defensive shutout in this century: Arizona, Detroit, Minnesota, Philadelphia and Washington. (Note: the New Orleans Saints got their first shutout of this century when they shutout Tampa Bay 41-0 on December 16.)
When you look at playoff games, there have been only 21 shutouts in playoff games since 1966 when the Super Bowl was first introduced. The last playoff shutout was in 2005 when the Carolina Panthers defeated the New York Giants 23-0 in an NFC first-round contest. The most shutouts in a playoff season were in 1985 when there were three. Two of those shutouts were wins by the Chicago Bears, who shutout the Giants and L.A. Rams on their way to winning the 1986 Super Bowl.
“99 Stats Before Kickoff” (Stats you need to know before the start of the 2013 NFL season) is available from e-book publisher Smashwords. Go to www.smashwords.com to download a copy, including a pdf version which can be viewed on your home computer. Cost is $2.99.
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