Monthly Archives: January, 2020

Today’s Sportstat: January 30, 2020

By Jerry Tapp on | Leave a comment

 

Super Bowl scoreboard watching

The Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers face off in the Super Bowl this Sunday in Miami.

Will it be a high-scoring game, as many experts are predicting? Will having the lead at halftime of the Super Bowl make a difference? Will it be a close game?

To give some insight to those questions (and potential answers), let’s look at some of the points stats in the previous 53 Super Bowls.

SCORING FIRST
* The team that scores first in the Super Bowl is 36-17 (.679)

FIRST QUARTER
* Teams that were scoreless in the first quarter were 15-29 (.341)
* Teams that scored in the first quarter were 38-24 (.613)
* Teams that scored 10 or more points in the first quarter were 11-6 (.647)
* Teams that scored 13 or more points in the first quarter were 7-2 (.778)

HALFTIME
* Teams that scored in each of the first two quarters were 32-14 (.696)
* Teams that were scoreless at halftime were 0-13
* Teams that scored 17 or more points in the first half were 20-2 (.909)
* Teams that had the lead at halftime were 39-11 (.780)

GOING INTO THE FOURTH QUARTER
* Teams that scored in each of the first three quarters were 27-7 (.794)
* Teams that had the lead going into the fourth quarter were 41-10 (.804)
* Teams that had a lead of 10 points or more going into the fourth quarter were 29-2 (.935)
* There have been only four teams that were scoreless going into the fourth quarter: Baltimore (1969 Super Bowl), Washington (1973 Super Bowl), Minnesota (1974 and 1975 Super Bowls).

FINAL SCORE
* Both teams scoring 30 or more points in a Super Bowl game has happened only three times: Jan. 21, 1979, Pittsburgh 35, Dallas 31; Feb. 3, 2013, Baltimore 34, San Francisco 31; February 4, 2018, Philadelphia 41, New England 33 (the Patriots 33 points is the most points scored by a team that lost the Super Bowl).
* There were six times where the team that won the Super Bowl scored less than 20 points. Four of those six times were in the first 10 Super Bowls. The last time was last year when the Patriots beat the L.A. Rams 13-3. The Pats 13 points was the fewest points scored to win a Super Bowl.
* Teams that scored 30 or more points in a Super Bowl game were 27-3 (.900).
* In the first 10 Super Bowls, the average score was 22.2-9.1 (31.3 average total points scored). In the last 10 Super Bowls, the average score was 30.0-19.6 (49.6 average total points scored).
* Twenty of the 53 previous Super Bowls were decided by one score (eight points or less). Twelve of the 53 previous Super Bowls were decided by 20 points or more.
* Of the 20 Super Bowls decided by eight points or less, 11 of them have happened since 2000 and six have happened since 2010.
* In the last 22 Super Bowls, 13 were decided by less than 10 points.
* The average margin of victory in the first 10 Super Bowls was 13.1. The average margin of victory in the last 10 Super Bowls was 9.8.
* The two teams in the Super Bowl have combined to score 60 or more points in 10 Super Bowls.
* The 16 combined points by the Patriots and Rams in last year’s Super Bowl was the fewest for any Super Bowl game.
* There have been 12 20-point (or more) blowouts in the Super Bowl, the last coming in 2013 when the Seahawks beat the Denver Broncos 43-8. Only three of the last 16 Super Bowls have been decided by 14 or more points.

DID YOU KNOW?
* Since 2000, the New England Patriots have appeared in nine of those 19 Super Bowls, winning six and losing three.

 

Follow Jerry on Twitter @StatsonTapp

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Today’s Sportstat: January 27, 2020

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24 stats you may not know about Kobe Bryant

The sports world was stunned by the news that Kobe Bryant died along with eight other people (including his 13-year-old daughter) yesterday in a helicopter accident.

Bryant was a legend in the game of basketball and his stats like his 20 years with the Los Angeles Lakers, five NBA titles, 18 NBA All-Star Game selections, and the fourth leading scorer in league history are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the influence he had on the game.

In honor of Kobe’s number 24 that he wore (he also wore number 8 in his career), here are 24 stats you may not know about Kobe.

  1. Kobe entered the league in 1996 as a teenager. He tallied 1,759 points in the league as a teenager. That is second most all-time in the league behind LeBron James who scored 2,362 points as a teenager. Kobe also scored 1,943 points in the regular season at age 36 and beyond, 28th most in the league. He is the only player in the league to tally 1,500 points as a teenager and score 1,500 points at age 36 and older.
  2. He ended his career with 33,643 points, 7,047 rebounds and 6,306 assists. He is one of only four players in NBA history to have 25,000 points, 7,000 rebounds and 6,000 assists in an NBA career. The others: Oscar Robertson, LeBron James and John Havlicek.
  3. Kobe averaged under 20.0 points per game in a season in only five of his 20 seasons.
  4. He had 12 seasons where he averaged 25.0 or more points per game. That ties him for second on the all-time list with Michael Jordan and Karl Malone. Leading the way with 16 seasons with 25.0 points per game in a season is LeBron James.
  5. Bryant had 290 points, 75 rebounds and 70 assists in his career in the NBA All-Star Game. Only two other players have scored 100 points and had 70 rebounds and 70 assists in a career in the All-Star Game: LeBron James and Bob Cousy.
  6. His 290 All-Star Game points is second all-time behind James who has 362.
  7. Kobe had 5,640 playoff points, good enough for fourth all-time behind LeBron, Jordan and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
  8. Only seven players have 1,000 or more rebounds and 1,000 or more assists in their NBA playoff careers: Kobe, Magic Johnson, LeBron, Jason Kidd, Larry Bird, Scottie Pippen and Jordan.
  9. Bryant ranks third all-time on the list for most playoff minutes with 8,643. LeBron James tops the list with 10,050 and Tim Duncan is second with 9,364.
  10. Bryant never had a regular season in the NBA where he shot 50% or higher. In fact, his highest field goal percentage was .469 in 2001-02.
  11. He started only seven games in the first 150 he played in the league.
  12. Kobe as drafted 13th in the 1996 NBA Draft. The number one pick that year was Allen Iverson. Of all the players selected in that draft, Kobe tops the list with 1,346 games played in the league and his 33,643 points is the most by any player taken in that draft. He is the only player drafted in the ’96 NBA Draft who played 20 or more seasons in the league.
  13. Basketball-reference.com on his profile page lists his yearly salary while he played in the league. He ended his career with salaries totaling $328,238,062.
  14. He made his NBA debut on November 3, 1996. He played 6:22 and had one field goal attempt, one rebound, one block and one turnover.
  15. His last game was played on April 13, 2016. In 42:09 minutes played, Kobe scored 60 points on 22-for-50 from the field, including 6-for-21 from beyond the three-point arc.
  16. Born in Philadelphia, PA, Bryant’s 33,643 career points is the most by any NBA player born in Pennsylvania. Second on the list is Wilt Chamberlain with 31,419.
  17. During his career, Kobe averaged 27.3 points per game in the regular season versus the Portland Trailblazers, highest against any team in the league. His lowest points per game in his career were against the Detroit Pistons, 22.2.
  18. Kobe made the NBA All-Defensive team 12 times. Tim Duncan tops the list making that All-NBA Defensive team 15 times.
  19. Kobe made the first team All-Defensive team nine times, tied for most all-time with Kevin Garnett, Gary Payton and Michael Jordan.
  20. Bryant had five seasons in his career where he averaged 40 or more minutes played per game. He is one of 16 players in league history to do so. Wilt Chamberlain had 14 seasons where he averaged 40 or more minutes played for the campaign.
  21. Kobe is one of only three players to attempt 25,000 or more shots in NBA regular season games in a career. He attempted 26,200. Karl Malone had 26,210 and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar had 28,307.
  22. Kobe Bryant was a second team All-Rookie selection in his first season. The first team that year was Shareef Abdur-Rahim, Marcus Camby, Allen Iverson, Stephon Marbury and Antoine Walker. Also on the second team with Kobe were Ray Allen, Kerry Kittles, Travis Knight and Matt Malone.
  23. After being drafted by the Charlotte Hornets with the 13th pick of the 1996 NBA Draft, Kobe was traded to the Lakers for Vlade Divac in a draft day swap. Divac eventually came back to the Lakers in 2004-05 and played 15 games for the team with Kobe. Divac retired after that season.
  24. Kobe and Bob Petti are the only players to win four NBA All-Star Game MVPs. LeBron James, Michael Jordan, Oscar Robertson and Shaquille O’Neal each won three All-Star Game MVP awards.

 

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Today’s Sportstat: January 23, 2020

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PACKERSTATS-Game #18-2019 season

Here are some of the numbers that helped define the Packers 37-20 road playoff loss to the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday, January 19.

  • Well, the Packers ended the 2019 season going 14-0 when they kept their opponents under 24 points in a game; they were 0-4 when the opposition scored 25 or more points.
  • Green Bay finished the 2019 campaign 14-4 (regular season and playoffs). Three of their four losses were road games in California… two to San Francisco, one to the L.A. Chargers. The 2020 regular season has only one trip to California for the Pack: they travel to San Francisco to face the 49ers in 2020!
  • The Packers have now lost four of their last five NFC Championship Game contests. The 17-point defeat this year to the 49ers was the second largest margin of defeat for the team in an NFC/NFL title game. They lost by 23 points to the Atlanta Falcons in the 2016 (season) NFC title contest.
  • Green Bay has now lost five of their last seven road playoff games. The Pack is 9-14 (.391) in road playoff games in the Super Bowl era (since 1966).
  • Green Bay is 2-6 vs. the Niners in their last eight matchups (regular season and playoffs).
  • The score at the end of the first quarter was San Francisco 7, Green Bay 0. Since 2000, the Packers are 4-7 in playoff games when they do not score in the first quarter.
  • Green Bay was behind 27-0 at halftime. They are 2-48 in their history when they are behind by 20 points or more at halftime in a game.
  • The Packers allowed three sacks of Aaron Rodgers. The team is 8-10-1 (.447) over the past two seasons (all games) when they allow three or more sacks in a game.
  • Aaron Rodgers threw a pair of interceptions. Green Bay is 8-10 (regular season and playoffs) in games when Rodgers has two or more interceptions. The Packers are 2-7 in playoff games when Rodgers has one or more interception.
  • Green Bay did not have a takeaway in the game. They are 16-41 (.281) since 2000 in games where they did not have a takeaway. In their last 19 games where they did not have a takeaway (regular season and playoffs) the Packers have only won two of those games.
  • The Packers ended the season 12-0 in games when they had at least one takeaway… they were 2-4 in 2019 in games when they did not get a takeaway.
  • With a pair of TDs in the game, Aaron Jones set the Packers all-time record for most TDs in a single season (regular season and playoffs) with 23. It was the 18th time in NFL history that a player had 23 or more TDs in a season (regular season and playoffs). The last player to do it before Jones was in 2018 when the Rams’ Todd Gurley had 23 TDs. LaDainian Tomlinson holds the NFL record with 33 total touchdowns in the 2006 season.
  • Forty-Niners running back Raheem Mostert had four touchdowns in the game. He became only the third player to score four or more TDs against the Packers in a game. The others: Carolina’s DeAngelo Williams in 2008 and the Bears’ Bobby Douglass in 1973.
  • Mostert had 220 yards rushing in the game on 29 carries. The 220 yards rushing is the third highest in a game against the Packers. Tommy Wilson (Rams) had 223 yards rushing in a game against the Pack on 12-16-1956 and the Rams Tommy Bell had 221 yards rushing in a 9-24-1989 contest against Green Bay.
  • San Francisco finished the game with 285 yards rushing. The Packers are 1-37 in their history when a team gains 250 or more yards rushing (regular season and playoffs). The only game they won when the opponents rushed for 250+ yards was in 1965 against the Vikings; they had 251 yards rushing in that game, won by the Packers, 24-19.
  • Davante Adams had nine receptions for 138 yards. He now has 20 games in his career (regular season and playoffs) with 100 or more yards receiving. That places him seventh on the all-time Packers list; James Lofton tops the list with 33 100-yard receiving games. Adams now holds the Packers record with four playoff games with 100 or more yards receiving.
  • Rookie Jace Sternberger caught a TD pass from Rodgers in the game. It was not only his first NFL TD, but also his first NFL reception.
  • Rodgers had a pair of TD passes and set the team record for most playoff TD passes with 40, passing Brett Favre who had 39 with the team. His 40 playoff TD passes ties him with Peyton manning for fourth on the all-time list. Tom Brady tops the list with 73 followed by Joe Montana with 45 and Brett Favre with 44 (Favre had five career playoff TD passes with the Vikings in addition to his 39 with the Packers).
  • Rodgers ended the game 31-for-39 (79.5%) passing for 326 yards and a 97.2 Passer Rating. The 79.5 completion percentage was the second highest in a playoff game in his career (it is the 10th highest completion percentage in any game of his career, regular season or playoffs). The Packers are now 7-1 in playoff games when Rodgers has a Passer Rating of 100 or better… they are now 3-7 in playoff games when his Passer rating is below 100.
  • Green Bay had only 62 yards rushing in the contest. For the season, the team was 10-1 in games when they had 100 or more yards rushing; 4-3 in games when they had less than 100 yards on the ground.
  • The Packers did not lose back-to-back games in 2019. The last time they went an entire regular season without losing back-to-back games was in 2014. They finished that year 13-5 and lost to the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC Championship Game.
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Today’s Sportstat: January 16, 2020

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14 stats the Packers need to improve to win the NFC title game

The Packers will venture out to California to play the San Francisco 49ers for the second time this season. Less than two months ago, on November 24, the Pack lost to the 49ers 38-9 in their Week #12 game. To advance to the Super Bowl, Green Bay will need to do a lot of things differently this time against San Francisco.

Here’s a look at 14 stats from the first meeting between the two teams and how the Packers will need to reverse those numbers.

  1. San Francisco had a 10-0 lead at the end of the first quarter. The Packers cannot let the 49ers get off to a quick start like they did last game. Green Bay only let two opponents score 10 or more points in the first quarter all season (SF and Detroit on 10/14); they were 1-1 in those two games. They were 3-2 in games when they did not score in the first quarter and 10-1 in games where they did score in the first quarter. They were also 3-2 in games this season when they were behind after one quarter.
  2. Aaron Rodgers had only 104 yards passing. The 104 yards passing was the lowest of the year for ARod. The second lowest was 161 yards passing against the Chargers, another loss for the Packers in 2019. Green Bay is 0-8 in Rodgers’ career when he has less than 155 yards passing in a game and 1-11 when he has less than 170 yards passing in a game.
  3. Green Bay gave up five sacks in the contest. The 49ers five sacks against the Pack was tied for the most against the Packers in 2019. Green Bay is 5-17 since 2010 in games when they allow five or more sacks. Conversely, they are 9-2 since 2010 in games when they do not allow a sack in the contest.
  4. The Packers did not have a takeaway in the game. Green Bay was 1-3 this season when they did not have a takeaway… 12-0 in games when they had at least one takeaway. Since 2010, they are 6-26 in games when they do not have a takeaway… 96-30-2 since 2010 when they get at least one takeaway in a game.
  5. The Pack was 1-for-15 in third down attempts in the game. A third down conversion rate of 6.7% will not cut it in this game. The 1-for-15 on third down was the worst of the season for Green Bay. The Packers are 67-22 since 2010 in regular season games when they convert 40% or higher of their third down attempts. Last week against Seattle, the Packers converted on 9-of-14 third downs for 64.3%. That was the third highest third down conversion for the Packers in their history in a playoff game.
  6. Aaron Jones had 13 carries for 38 yards, a 2.9 average. Jones ended the 2019 season with a 4.6 yards per carry average. Green Bay was 9-0 this season when Jones had a per carry average above 4.0 in a game. They were 4-3 when it was below four yards per carry in a game.
  7. Davante Adams had seven catches, but for only 43 yards. In two of the three losses the Packers had this year, Adams had under 50 yards receiving. Green Bay is 24-11-1 in Adams’ career when he scores a TD.
  8. Green Bay had the ball 11 times in the first game, but no drive in that game started past their own 35 yardline. Field position will be a key. They can’t start every drive in their own territory.
  9. They had eight drives in the first half and did not score. In five of their eight drives in the first half, the Packers were three-and-out. Their longest drive of the first half was eight plays and 3:47. They will need to sustain drives and get first downs. For the season, Green Bay scored on 19 or the 23 drives that went 10 plays or longer.
  10. San Francisco scored on seven of their 11 drives in the game. Four of those scores came on drives that lasted four plays or less.
  11. Final Score, 38-9. Green Bay ended the year going 12-1 in games where they scored 20 or more points in a game. They were 0-3 in games where they allowed the opposition to score 26 or more points in the game.
  12. San Francisco had 112 yards rushing. In the three games the Packers lost this season, the opponents had more than 100 yards rushing in each of those contests.
  13. The Packers longest pass completion in the game was 15 yards. Rodgers completed a pass to Jamaal Williams for 15 yards for the longest pass of the game. The longest pass to a wide receiver was 14 yards to Adams.
  14. The longest play from scrimmage in the game was a 21-yard run by AllenLazard. The 21-yard run by Lazard was the longest play for the Packers. Is it possible that more trick plays need to be in the game plan?

Keys for a Packers win?

  • A trick play or two will help.
  • Keep the game a one-score game at halftime
  • Aaron Rodgers cannot throw an interception
  • The “O” line has to keep Rodgers on his feet; no more than two sacks
  • Sustain drives; a third down conversion rate above 40%
  • The running backs need to break a couple of long runs
  • Davante Adams has to have a big game
  • Rodgers two TD passes and 200-plus yards passing would be great
  • The “D” needs to get a takeaway (or two)
  • Mason Crosby cannot miss

 

Follow Jerry on Twitter @StatsonTapp

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Today’s Sportstat: January 13, 2020

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PACKERSTATS-Game #17-2019 season

Here are some of the numbers that helped define the Packers 28-23 home playoff win over the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday, January 12.

  • The Packers upped their record to 5-0 this season in games when they scored 28 or more points. They also saw their record in 2019 go to 14-0 when they keep the opponents under 24 points in a game.
  • Green Bay has now won three consecutive home playoff games. The last time they lost a home playoff game was on January 5, 2014, 23-20 to San Francisco.
  • The Pack has won four of their last five games against Seattle. Four of their last six games against the Seahawks have been decided by eight points or less.
  • The temperature was 23 degrees at game time. Green Bay is 16-6-1 (.717) in home games played below 25 degrees.
  • Seattle won the coin toss. The Packers are 6-6 since 2001 in playoff games when they do not win the opening coin toss.
  • Green Bay scored first in the game on an Aaron Rodgers-to-Davante Adams pass. They are now 16-8 (.667) in the Super Bowl era (since 1967) in playoff games when they score first in the contest.
  • Aaron Jones had a pair of TD runs in the game giving him 21 total TDs for the season. That is one behind Ahman Green’s team record; he scored 22 total TDs in 2003 (regular season and playoffs).
  • Preston and Za’Darius Smith became the second set of Packers teammates in team history to each have two or more sacks in a playoff game. Mike Neal (2 sacks) and Nick Perry (2.5 sacks) are the only other Packers pair to have two or more sacks in the same playoff game. They did it January 10, 2016 in the Pack’s 35-18 playoff win over Washington. Green Bay was 5-0 this season when Preston Smith had 1.5 or more sacks in a game; the Pack was 5-0 in 2019 when Za’Darious Smith had two or more sacks in a contest.
  • Green Bay had a 21-3 lead at halftime. They have never lost a playoff game where they had a halftime lead of 18 or more points (5-0). The last time the Packers lost any game where they had a lead of 18 points or more at halftime was October 7, 2012 against the Indianapolis Colts. They lost that game 30-27. Ironically, they were leading that game 21-3 at halftime.
  • Davante Adams had a pair of TD receptions in the game. It was Adams’ first two-TD playoff game. The Packers are 8-0 in regular season games when Adams has two or more TDs.
  • Adams broke the Packers single-game playoff record for most receiving yards in a game. He had 160 yards receiving; one yard more than Jermichael Finley had in a January 10, 2010 playoff game against Arizona. Adams now has three playoff games with 100 or more receiving yards which ties him with Robert Brooks, Antonio Freeman and Greg Jennings for most 100-yard receiving games in the playoffs by a Packer player.
  • Adams ended the game with eight catches, 160 receiving yards and two TD receptions. He became the 11th player in NFL playoff history to reach those numbers in a post-season game.
  • Green Bay had a 28-17 lead going into the fourth quarter. The last time the Packers lost a game when they had a lead of 10 points or more going into the fourth quarter was October 10, 2010. They led 13-3 going into the fourth quarter of that game and lost the contest 16-13.
  • For the 10th time this season, the Pack did not have a turnover in the game. They are 10-0 in those games.
  • Aaron Rodgers had a Passer Rating of 113.7 in the game. Green Bay is 7-1 in playoff games when Rodgers has a PR of 100 or higher.
  • Of the 17 playoff games that Rodgers has started, the 243 passing yards in yesterday’s game is the 5th lowest of those starts.
  • Rodgers did not have an interception in the game. Green Bay is 9-1 in playoff games started by Rodgers when he does not throw an interception. In the eight playoff games where Rodgers has thrown one or more interceptions, Green Bay has a 2-6 record.
  • Seattle scored 20 points in the second half. Green Bay is now 29-65-1 (.311) in the Super Bowl era in games when their opponents score 20 or more points in the second half.
  • Green Bay converted 9-of-14 third down attempts in the game, 64.3%. That was the highest third down percentage rate in a game since November 28, 2016 when they converted 71.4 of third downs against the Eagles. Since the 2015 season, Green Bay is 17-3 in games when they convert 50% of more of their third down attempts.
  • Green Bay has now won six straight games. The Kansas City Chiefs have the longest winning streak of the four teams remaining in the playoffs with seven. Both San Francisco and Tennessee have now won three straight contests.

 

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