15 Surprising NFL Statistics: Entering Week 15

It’s sad to think the 2012 NFL regular-season is coming to an end in a couple weeks. Many bitter fantasy football fans are already starting to pick favorites for playoff runs, while others are busy with the holiday season and are in complete denial.

The following are 20 NFL statistics about teams and fantasy players that you may find interesting

Browns Josh Gordon is the 1st rookie to record 3 straight games with a TD catch of at least 30 yards since Randy Moss in 1998. Also entering week 15, Gordon’s 732 receiving yards are the most by any rookie selected in the supplemental draft since it began in 1977. There were a lot of big-name first-round running backs this season including Trent Richardson (3rd overall), Doug Martin (31st) and David Wilson (32), but there were equally a high number of diamonds in the rough at the RB position throughout the 2012 NFL draft. Vick Ballard 5th Round (170th overall), Alfred Morris 6th round (173 overall) and Bryce Brown 7th round (229th overall) all look to have promising careers in the NFL. It should also be noted that Rams Daryl Richardson was one pick away from being Mr. irrelevant, drafted 252nd overall. The Dallas Cowboys made a conscious effort in the off-season to improve their defensive secondary. They were aggressive at the NFL draft moving up to snag Morris Claiborne and paying big bucks in free agency to Brandon Carr, yet entering week 15 the Dallas Cowboys have only six team interceptions…. The Chicago Bears have 21. The Detroit Lions are not having the type of season you would expect if you looked at their passing statistics alone. The Lions are leading the league in passing yards a game, yet have only 19 total passing touchdowns (Shaun Hill has 2 of them). The common consensus of the Green Bay Packers passing game is that Aaron Rodgers loves to spread the ball around. Yet the Packers have three wide receivers in the top 20 for passing touchdowns. James Jones (9), Randall Cobb (7) and Jordy Nelson (6). 22 of Aaron Rodgers 29 passing touchdowns have gone to these three guys. Entering week 15, The Oakland Raiders have three total team rushing touchdowns. Amazing! The Jacksonville Jaguars as a team have 14 total sacks, Aldon Smith has 19.5 sacks on his own. There are nine NFL defenders with 10 sacks are more. The New England Patriots have scored 61 more points than the Jacksonville Jaguars and Kansas City Chiefs combined. Redskins Alfred Morris is having a phenomenal season ranking third in the NFL for rushing yards with 1,228. Yet fantasy football PPR owners know very well that while he’s extremely valuable as a ballcarrier, his 6 receptions on the season drop his fantasy value slightly. Despite a winning record of 7-6, the Minnesota Vikings have only won one game on the road so far this season. Two of their next three games are on the road (@STL, @HOU) Many of us have already forgotten, but the Arizona Cardinals started the NFL season with an impressive 4-0 start. The Card’s beat the Seahawks and even won a shocker in Foxborough surprising the New England Patriots 20-18. After being undefeated in the month of September, the Cardinals have now lost nine straight games and hold the longest current losing streak in the NFL. Talk about pocket passers, Matt Schaub has -8 rushing yards this season, Drew Bress has -5. Mark Sanchez, Ryan Tannehill and Brandon Weeden have all thrown more interceptions than touchdowns thus far. Each AFC QB has started all 13 games for their respective teams. Colin Kaepernick maybe San Francisco’s new favorite quarterback, but Alex Smith currently holds the NFL’s best pass completion percentage at 70.0. Those who love to blame all of Mike Vick’s problems on the offensive line should note after a very shaky start Nick Foles enters week 15 without turning the ball over in his three previous games, zero interceptions and zero fumbles lost.