The NFL fantastic five is a stats-based column we will have for you every Wednesday of the NFL season highlighting, you guessed it, five fantastic stats from the previous week of the NFL season. For Week 3, there was no shortage of fantastic stats, so join us as we peruse some of the best.
Does the word fantastic always mean excellent or great? No, it doesn’t.
Fantastic can also mean grotesque, overwhelming or unbelievable, depending on context.
Indeed, fantastic will most often be used here as it usually is in every-day life: as an adjective to describe something awesome—or excellent or great, if you prefer.
OK, enough about the English language and its use in this column. Let’s talk fantastic football stats and which five made the cut this week.
Matt Ryan breaks 2 more Falcons records
Stat: 155.9 passer rating, 87.5 percent completion-rate
During Week 1 of the 2014 season, Atlanta Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan broke Chris Chandler’s 13-year-old franchise record for passing yards in a single game. His 448 yards against the NFC South-rival New Orleans Saints were 17 more than Chandler’s 431 (Dec. 23, 2001 against Buffalo Bills).
This week, Ryan broke two more franchise single-game records as he and the Falcons thoroughly embarrassed another NFC South foe, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, on Thursday Night Football, 56-14.
Completing 21 of his 24 passes for an 87.50 percent completion-rate, Ryan broke Steve Bartowski’s 30-year-old franchise mark, which he set by completing 24 of 28 passes (85.71 percent) against the Detroit Lions on Sept. 9, 1984.
Ryan’s 21-of-24 passing for 286 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions equaled a 155.9 passer rating, also a franchise record. The previous record of 154.5 was held by Wade Wilson, which the former eighth-round draft pick accomplished on Dec. 13, 1992, also against a bad Bucs squad.
Matty Ice now owns at least a share of five Falcons single-game offensive records. They are listed below, with the date he set the record in parenthesis:
- Passes completed: 37 (Dec. 23, 2013)
- Completion rate: 87.5% (Sept. 18, 2014)
- Passing yards: 448 (Sept. 7, 2014)
- Passer rating: 155.9 (Sept. 18, 2014)
- Total offense: 448 (Sept. 7, 2014)
Steelers’ backs get old fashioned on Panthers
Stat: Team 7.76 rush yards per attempt
Of the top 10 single-game performances for the Pittsburgh Steelers in terms of rush yards per attempt, four of them occurred during the 1970s, when Chuck Knoll roamed the sidelines and guys like Franco Harris and John Fuqua pounded defenses into a pulp with tough, physical running.
Le’Veon Bell and LeGarrette Blount have Steelers fans who have been around long enough to remember the Immaculate Reception going back in time, back to when gas was cheaper and television sets were anything but flat. Why?
Against the Carolina Panthers on Sunday Night Football, Bell and Blount combined to carry 31 times for 265 yards (8.55 yards per carry) and a touchdown in the 37-19 victory. They are the first pair of Steelers backs to each rush for 100-plus yards since 1986, when on Oct. 26 of that season Walter Abercrombie and Earnest Jackson combined to carry 43 times for 241 yards (5.60 YPC) and a touchdown in a 30-9 defeat of the Cincinnati Bengals.
As a team on Sunday night, the Steelers averaged 7.76 yards per carry, the third-highest single-game average in franchise history (playoffs included, with a minimum of 20 team carries). It also is the third-highest single-game average allowed by Carolina in its history (again including the playoffs and with a team 20-carry minimum).
Bell’s 147 yards were a career high, while Blount set a career high and led all Week 3 rushers with an 11.80 yards-per-carry average.
Keeping the Red Rifle upright
Stat: One pressure allowed
Poor Mike Pollak. The Cincinnati Bengals offensive line was nearly perfect in protecting quarterback Andy Dalton against the Tennessee Titans. On 26 dropbacks, Dalton was pressured just once—one measly little QB hurry allowed by Pollak, Cincinnati’s starting right guard, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required).
He had to be that guy.
The Bengals won the game in blowout fashion over the Titans, 33-7. The game was never close, as Cincy built a 10-0 lead by the end of the first quarter, thanks in part to a Mohamed Sanu 18-yard touchdown pass to Dalton, his quarterback.
Yes, Sanu was well-protected on the trick play.
By halftime, the game was well in hand, as the Titans had nothing going offensively and kept shooting themselves in the foot—Tennessee finished with 11 penalties and converted just 2-of-12 third downs (16.7 percent).
Near-perfect protection of Dalton wasn’t the deciding factor in beating the Titans, but the Bengals offensive line can be proud of its performance against the likes of defensive end Jurrell Casey and linebackers Shaun Phillips and Kamerion Wimbley.
According to PFF, Cincinnati has allowed zero pressures of its quarterbacks twice since 2007, the earliest season for which the stats site has grades. If not for its starting right guard, that would have been three times (math is obviously my strong suit).
Tsk, tsk tsk.
Cardinals’ rookies 23, 49ers 14
Stat: Arizona rookies score all 23 points
We don’t have a stat for the last time this happened in an NFL game, nor do we know for sure if it has ever happened (it probably has), but the Arizona Cardinals defeated the NFC West-rival San Francisco 49ers Sunday by having rookie players account for every point the team scored.
Rookie kicker Chandler Catanzaro, who is 9-of-9 on field goal attempts with a long of 51 yards this season, booted three field goals and two extra points, while rookie wide receiver John Brown added two second-half touchdowns.
Brown, a third-round pick of the Cardinals this past May, has nine receptions for 109 yards (12.1 yards per catch) and a team-leading three touchdowns. He is the first rookie Cardinals receiver to have a multiple-touchdown game within his first three career games since Anquan Boldin in 2003, and the only other Cardinals player to do it since 1960 is Mel Gray, way back in 1971.
Brown explained his success against the typically tenacious San Francisco defense to Kyle Odegard of AZCardinals.com: “People are watching Mike (Floyd) and Larry (Fitzgerald),” he said. “Once they pull down, they basically give me one-on-one coverage because I’m new.”
His “They-don’t-know-who-I-am” routine may not work much longer, as he, Cleveland Browns running back Isaiah Crowell and Jacksonville Jaguars receiver Allen Hurns lead all rookies with three touchdowns each in three games. The franchise record for receiving touchdowns by a rookie is eight, held by both Boldin and Fitzgerald.
And not to be outdone, Catanzaro is fourth in the entire NFL in scoring with 30 points through three games. He is on pace for 160 points, which would be a franchise single-season record.
Tony Romo rallies Cowboys
Stat: Franchise record-tying 21-point come-from-behind win
Following the Week 1 loss to the 49ers that prompted a piece on the worst home openers in Dallas Cowboys history, some wondered if quarterback Tony Romo would ever be the same after offseason back surgery. Romo has put that to rest with two solid performances over the past two weeks—both Cowboys wins.
Week 3 was one for the ages for Romo and the Cowboys. Dallas inexplicably fell behind to the St. Louis Rams by three scores after Romo threw an interception to Rams cornerback Janoris Jenkins, who returned it 25 yards for a touchdown to make it 21-0 with 6:06 left in the first half.
Romo wasn’t playing poorly before the interception; he was 8-of-10 passing for 62 yards until the Jenkins pick-six.
In fact, other than that one play, Romo was outstanding against the Rams defense. Overall, he completed 18 of 23 passes (78.3 percent) for 217 yards, two touchdowns and the pick for a 116.8 passer rating. Whereas in some games we have watched Romo crumble after throwing an interception, he was nothing if not brilliant post-pick Sunday, completing 10 of his final 12 passes for 155 yards and the two scores.
Romo finished off the comeback by connecting with receiver Terrance Williams on a 12-yard strike with 6:13 remaining in regulation.
All stats gathered from Pro-Football-Reference.com unless otherwise stated
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