Colin Kaepernick: Into the Black</h1> <article> <h1>Colin Kaepernick: Into the Black</h1> <p>Scott Kacsmar — Tue, 11 Jul 2017 12:14:13 -0400</p> <p>With training camp approaching, Colin Kaepernick remains a free agent. We look at how more than just football reasons are driving this, and how Kaepernick would be an extreme rarity in NFL history if his age-30 season never actually happens.</p> <p><a href="http://www.footballoutsiders.com/stat-analysis/2017/colin-kaepernick-black">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>GM Genius: Teaching Critical Thinking with Fantasy Football</h1> <p>Aaron Schatz — Fri, 07 Jul 2017 13:24:36 -0400</p> <p>PSA: The <a href="www.howidecide.org" target="_blank">How I Decide Foundation</a>, an educational nonprofit focused on youth decision-making, is launching <A href="www.gmgenius.com" target="_blank">GM Genius</a>, a national college scholarship competition and learning platform based on fantasy football for the 2017 NFL season. Leveraging the tremendous popularity of fantasy football among teens, the competition includes animated videos that teach key decision-making and critical thinking concepts. Students ages 13 to 19 can compete to win $25,000 in college scholarships, weekly prizes, and matching grants for their schools. To learn more or to sign up, go to <A href="www.gmgenius.com" target="_blank">www.gmgenius.com</a>.</p> <p><a href="http://www.footballoutsiders.com/extra-points/2017/gm-genius-teaching-critical-thinking-fantasy-football">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>Ranking the NFL's Best Schemes</h1> <p>Vincent Verhei — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 18:38:38 -0400</p> <p>Our old pal Doug Farrar has a pair of pieces up at Bleacher Report looking at some of the best schemes in the NFL.</p> <p><a href="http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2718815-nfl1000-ranking-the-best-offensive-schemes" target="_new">Starting on offense</a>, Farrar looks at what teams like Pittsburgh, Buffalo, and Dallas do so effectively on the ground, as well as the passing attacks of New England and Washington. He also praises what Kyle Shanahan's teams do before the snap, and how Seattle can be dangerous even when everything goes wrong. </p> <p><a href="http://www.footballoutsiders.com/extra-points/2017/ranking-nfls-best-schemes">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>Football's Silent Killer</h1> <p>Vincent Verhei — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 18:22:57 -0400</p> <p>FO alumnus Mike Tanier, now with Bleacher Report, has taken a hard look at the sickle cell trait that can make football so very dangerous, what teams are doing to manage it, and why players at the lowest levels of football are at more risk.</p> <p><a href="http://www.footballoutsiders.com/extra-points/2017/footballs-silent-killer">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>Run Defense By Number of Backs, 2016</h1> <p>Rivers McCown — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 14:48:24 -0400</p> <p>Our look at defensive success against multiple-back formations has us scratching our heads about Miami. Are the Dolphins linebackers better than their reputation?</p> <p><a href="http://www.footballoutsiders.com/stat-analysis/2017/run-defense-number-backs-2016">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>SITE NEWS: Important Message About FO Premium Subscriptions for 2017</h1> <p>Aaron Schatz — Fri, 30 Jun 2017 23:25:39 -0400</p> <p>An important message about the status of the various FO Premium products in 2017. (Click to read more.)</p> <p><a href="http://www.footballoutsiders.com/extra-points/2017/site-news-important-message-about-fo-premium-subscriptions-2017">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>Run Offense By Number of Backs, 2016</h1> <p>Rivers McCown — Thu, 29 Jun 2017 13:05:57 -0400</p> <p>Are fullbacks disappearing from the NFL? Yes they are -- but in cities like Green Bay, they are not dead yet.</p> <p><a href="http://www.footballoutsiders.com/stat-analysis/2017/run-offense-number-backs-2016">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>2016 Offensive Personnel Analysis</h1> <p>Bryan Knowles — Tue, 27 Jun 2017 13:08:06 -0400</p> <p>In which we ask the question: if you're not using 11 personnel, are you really playing modern football?</p> <p><a href="http://www.footballoutsiders.com/stat-analysis/2017/2016-offensive-personnel-analysis">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>Oral History of NFL Europe</h1> <p>Aaron Schatz — Sat, 24 Jun 2017 15:36:18 -0400</p> <p>You may miss this on the ESPN website, but here's a really fun oral history of NFL Europe, ten years after it played it's last game. Some discussion of just how weird it was trying to put on American football games overseas, how excited the fans got, and what it did for young players looking to get game reps.</p> </article> <article> <h1>ESPN: Best QB, RB, WR, TE Seasons of Last 30 Years</h1> <p>Aaron Schatz — Fri, 23 Jun 2017 15:50:55 -0400</p> <p>The final part of this week's big 30-year DVOA retrospective is a look at the best individual seasons using DVOA (for quarterbacks) and DYAR (for running backs, wide receivers, and tight ends).</p> </article> <article> <h1>Chiefs Extend Andy Reid, But Part Ways with GM John Dorsey</h1> <p>Scott Kacsmar — Thu, 22 Jun 2017 17:14:18 -0400</p> <p>The Chiefs have extended Andy Reid's contract and parted ways with John Dorsey.</p> <p><a href="http://www.footballoutsiders.com/extra-points/2017/chiefs-extend-andy-reid-part-ways-gm-john-dorsey">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>Defense and Pass Pressure, 2016</h1> <p>Scott Kacsmar — Thu, 22 Jun 2017 16:43:30 -0400</p> <p>Denver's defense was still great at producing pass pressure, while two NFC East teams really improved over 2015. Also: pressure splits by number of rushers, and how sacks can be overrated. Just ask Brandon Graham (or Erik Walden).</p> <p><a href="http://www.footballoutsiders.com/stat-analysis/2017/defense-and-pass-pressure-2016">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>ESPN: 30 Best Teams of the Last 30 Years</h1> <p>Aaron Schatz — Thu, 22 Jun 2017 12:01:47 -0400</p> <p>If you are a regular Football Outsiders reader, you already know that the No. 1 team is the 1991 Washington Redskins, the only team to appear on all three of our previous top 30 lists. Adding the postseason to these ratings just increases their dominance. Including postseason DVOA also moves up the 1988 and 1989 49ers, 1992 Cowboys, and 2000 Ravens, while moving down great teams that suffered playoff upset losses such as the 1987 49ers and 2010 Patriots. The next challenge for the 1991 Redskins comes sometime in the next year or two, when we finish up DVOA for the 1984 49ers and 1985 Bears.</p> </article> <article> <h1>Derek Carr Signs Five-Year, $125 Million Extension</h1> <p>Aaron Schatz — Thu, 22 Jun 2017 11:55:29 -0400</p> <p>The best-paid player in the NFL is never the best player in the NFL. It's the good quarterback who most recently needed a new contract. That's now Derek Carr of the Oakland Raiders, who has signed a five-year, $125 million extension. We have a lot of arguments around here about how good Carr is. But it's hard to argue with the idea that Derek Carr is an above-average NFL starting quarterback, even if you think he's 14th or 15th instead of an MVP candidate. (Click to read more.)</p> <p><a href="http://www.footballoutsiders.com/extra-points/2017/derek-carr">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>ESPN: 30 Best Special Teams of the Last 30 Years</h1> <p>Aaron Schatz — Wed, 21 Jun 2017 12:23:44 -0400</p> <p>Part three of our feature on the greatest teams of the DVOA era looks at the best special teams units since 1987. Seven of the top 30 were coached in some way by Dave Toub, who worked for the Chicago Bears in the 2000s and works for the Kansas City Chiefs today. Other teams with multiple appearances on this list include New Orleans, Baltimore, Philadelphia, Buffalo, and Cleveland. Tomorrow, we'll look at the top 30 teams overall, and we finish up Friday with top individual seasons.</p> </article> <article> <h1>Quarterbacks and Pressure, 2016</h1> <p>Scott Kacsmar — Tue, 20 Jun 2017 16:07:33 -0400</p> <p>A look at how passers did under pressure in 2016. Who extended the play the best: Aaron Rodgers or Russell Wilson? Is there any hope for Jared Goff after his rookie year? And does Ryan Tannehill consistently struggle with pressure more than his peers?</p> <p><a href="http://www.footballoutsiders.com/stat-analysis/2017/quarterbacks-and-pressure-2016">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>ESPN: 30 Best Defenses of the Last 30 Years</h1> <p>Aaron Schatz — Tue, 20 Jun 2017 15:01:47 -0400</p> <p>Today we have part two of our weeklong feature looking at the best teams of the DVOA era, going back to 1987. This is our list of the top defenses, chock full of Ravens and Steelers teams but topped by the legendary -- especially to Football Outsiders readers -- 1991 Philadelphia Eagles.</p> </article> <article> <h1>ESPN: 30 Best Offenses of the Last 30 Years</h1> <p>Aaron Schatz — Mon, 19 Jun 2017 13:15:42 -0400</p> <p>We've got a huge historical feature on ESPN Insider all week: Football Outsiders' own version of "30 for 30." Since we now have 30 years of DVOA ratings, we can count down the top 30 teams in DVOA history. Today, we start things off with the top 30 offenses. That means a lot of Patriots, Colts, and 49ers teams... and more Chiefs than you expect. One big change with this countdown is that we've incorporated the playoffs, which will boost teams such as the 1989 49ers and 1990 Bills that went on big postseason runs against tough competition. (Click to read more.)</p> <p><a href="http://www.footballoutsiders.com/fo-espn-feature-columns/2017/espn-30-best-offenses-last-30-years">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>2016 Defeats</h1> <p>Vincent Verhei — Thu, 15 Jun 2017 12:16:02 -0400</p> <p>The absence of J.J. Watt allowed a very surprising name (and his equally surprising teammates) to make the most big defensive plays in the league last year.</p> <p><a href="http://www.footballoutsiders.com/stat-analysis/2017/2016-defeats">read more</a></p> </article> <article> <h1>Quarterbacks and Salary, 2016</h1> <p>Guest — Tue, 13 Jun 2017 12:20:10 -0400</p> <p>By almost any measure, Matt Ryan was the NFL's best passers last year, but Dak Prescott was nearly as effective despite being paid about 2 percent as much. Guest columnist Kevin Kolbe looks at the best values among quarterbacks in the last five years.</p> <p><a href="http://www.footballoutsiders.com/stat-analysis/2017/quarterbacks-and-salary-2016">read more</a></p> </article> </main></body></html>