Today’s Sportstat: September 19, 2019
Most NFL touchdowns this decade
Which NFL player has had the most touchdowns this decade? Which player will end this decade with the most TDs?
The 2019 NFL season will be the last of this decade. When we close the book on this season, who will be the league’s most prolific TD machine?
After the second week of this season, we have a three-way tie for the most TDs this decade. The three? The recently-retired (but will he stay retired?) Rob Gronkowski, new Kansas City running back LeSean McCoy, and a player who has been in the news a bit these last few weeks… Antonio Brown. Each player has 80 TDs this decade. Brown scored a TD last week in his first game with his new team, the New England Patriots, to create the three-way tie.
If you were a betting man (or woman) who would you think would end the decade with the league’s most TDs? You might lean towards McCoy, especially if he becomes a major cog in the Chiefs’ offense. Gronk is probably a long, long shot, but who knows, he could come out of retirement at some time this campaign. Brown, on the other hand, might be a good bet, but with the black cloud hanging over him because of his off-the-field escapades, he may not even finish the year on an NFL roster.
Behind this trio are a pair of “retired” players, Dez Bryant and Marshawn Lynch, both with 75 TDs this decade. Tight End Jimmy Graham and running back Adrian Peterson have both scored a TD this season and are tied for sixth on the list with 72 touchdowns. Neither look like prime candidates to approach double-figures in TDs this season and seriously challenge for the title of most TDs this decade, but you never know.
Here is a look at the players who have scored 60 or more TDs this decade.
80-Antonio Brown, Rob Gronkowski, LeSean McCoy
75-Dez Bryant, Marshawn Lynch
72-Jimmy Graham, Adrian Peterson
68-Jordy Nelson
65-Arian Foster
63-A.J. Green
62-Calvin Johnson, Demaryius Thomas
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Jamaal Charles leads the Chiefs on the ground and in the air
Sports Stats ‘on Tapp’ is a sports statistics blog published with a focus on stats that go beyond the numbers.
Jamaal Charles (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Among the reasons for the improved play of the 4-0 Kansas City Chiefs this year has been running back Jamaal Charles. The sixth-year running back from Texas has been a go-to player for the K.C. offense. He has accumulated over 100 yards in offense via running and receiving in each of those first four games.
Looking at Charles’ stat line, you will see that he has now had 15 or more carries and five-plus receptions in each of the last three Kansas City victories. He is one of nine players this season who has had 15-plus carries and five-plus receptions for his team in a game. Houston‘s Arian Foster has reached the 15-5 mark twice this season.
Here’s a look at the running backs with the most 15-carry-5 reception games since 2010.
Ray Rice, Baltimore, 17 games
Arian Foster, Houston, 15 games
Matt Forte, Chicago, 7 games
Adrian Peterson, Minnesota, 7 games
LeSean McCoy, Philadelphia, 6 games
Frank Gore, San Francisco, 5 games
Peyton Hollis, Cleveland, 5 games
Fred Jackson, Buffalo, 5 games
Chris Johnson, Tennessee, 5 games
If we take those numbers a little higher, say 20 carries and 10 receptions in a game, the list of running backs who have reached this stat line is very limited; in fact, a running back with 20-plus carries and 10-plus receptions in a game has happened only 30 times since 1970 (AFL-NFL merger). It did, however, already happen here in 2013: Chicago’s Matt Forte on September 15th against Minnesota had 20 carries for 88 yards and 10 receptions for 73 yards in the Bears’ 31-30 win over the Vikings. Prior to that, the last 20-10 running back was in 2008 when Marshawn Lynch had 23 carries and 10 receptions for the Seattle Seahawks. Former Chargers running back LaDainian Tomlinson leads league with five 20-carry-10-reception games in his career.
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