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In another thread, we were discussing the consistent concern that Scott Turner will continue his pass happy tendencies against the Texans after finally rushing the ball adequately in a great win against Philadelphia.
There's only one problem with this line of thinking. Brace yourself.
Scott Turner is not a pass happy OC.
In 2022 so far, depending on what stat resource you look at, Washington runs the ball more frequently than 18 other NFL teams. In 2021, Washington ran the ball more than 24 NFL teams. Scott Turner calls more rushing plays than the majority of NFL offensive coordinators.
If you look at some numbers:
In 2022, we have rushed the ball 288 times. Only Chicago, Atlanta, the Giants, Philadelphia, and the Browns have more rushing attempts.
In 2021, we ran the ball 477 times. Only 9 other teams ran it more than that.
But total attempts can be misleading depending on how many offensive plays a team might have, so let's look at %'s:
In 2022, we've rushed the ball 45% of the time. Only 11 teams have run it at a higher %.
In 2021, we rushed the ball 46.5% of the time. Only 8 teams ran it at a higher %.
In 2020, Washington was in the bottom half of the league in terms of rushing frequency, ranked 24th in terms of rushing %. But over the last 2 seasons, Washington has been at or near top 10 in terms of frequency of rush attempts. Those are simply the numbers.
So why do we continue to talk about Scott Turner hating to rush the ball? Statistically - the NFL is still a passing league. In 2020 and 2021, only 3 teams ran more often than they passed the ball. In 2022, there's been a slight uptick and 6 teams (so far) are rushing more often than passing. Washington is not only on par with their NFL counterparts in terms of playcalling mix, they are a rush-heavy offense statistically.
None of this is a 'defense' of Scott Turner. I think there are definitely some negative aspects of his OC performance fans (including myself) have legitimate gripes with. But not rushing the ball enough is not a legitimate complaint, unless you think the entire NFL is missing the boat on that front.
We should stop saying 'Turner hates to run the ball'. Because it's not factual.
* One other interesting nugget when looking at the teams that run the ball most frequently... the list of top rushing teams includes both some of the NFL's best teams as well as some of the worst. In other words, running the rock more than you pass it is not some magic bullet or a requirement for success. Winning and losing are dependent on a number of factors, not just the run/pass ratio. At least that's what the statistics suggest
There's only one problem with this line of thinking. Brace yourself.
Scott Turner is not a pass happy OC.
In 2022 so far, depending on what stat resource you look at, Washington runs the ball more frequently than 18 other NFL teams. In 2021, Washington ran the ball more than 24 NFL teams. Scott Turner calls more rushing plays than the majority of NFL offensive coordinators.
If you look at some numbers:
In 2022, we have rushed the ball 288 times. Only Chicago, Atlanta, the Giants, Philadelphia, and the Browns have more rushing attempts.
In 2021, we ran the ball 477 times. Only 9 other teams ran it more than that.
But total attempts can be misleading depending on how many offensive plays a team might have, so let's look at %'s:
In 2022, we've rushed the ball 45% of the time. Only 11 teams have run it at a higher %.
In 2021, we rushed the ball 46.5% of the time. Only 8 teams ran it at a higher %.
In 2020, Washington was in the bottom half of the league in terms of rushing frequency, ranked 24th in terms of rushing %. But over the last 2 seasons, Washington has been at or near top 10 in terms of frequency of rush attempts. Those are simply the numbers.
So why do we continue to talk about Scott Turner hating to rush the ball? Statistically - the NFL is still a passing league. In 2020 and 2021, only 3 teams ran more often than they passed the ball. In 2022, there's been a slight uptick and 6 teams (so far) are rushing more often than passing. Washington is not only on par with their NFL counterparts in terms of playcalling mix, they are a rush-heavy offense statistically.
None of this is a 'defense' of Scott Turner. I think there are definitely some negative aspects of his OC performance fans (including myself) have legitimate gripes with. But not rushing the ball enough is not a legitimate complaint, unless you think the entire NFL is missing the boat on that front.
We should stop saying 'Turner hates to run the ball'. Because it's not factual.
* One other interesting nugget when looking at the teams that run the ball most frequently... the list of top rushing teams includes both some of the NFL's best teams as well as some of the worst. In other words, running the rock more than you pass it is not some magic bullet or a requirement for success. Winning and losing are dependent on a number of factors, not just the run/pass ratio. At least that's what the statistics suggest
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