by Aaron Schatz

Time to take a look at another strategy from the 2010 season: the empty backfield. How often did each team run an empty backfield, and how successful was each team?

Total use of empty backfields was up in 2010, from 3.8 percent of plays in 2009 to 5.0 percent of plays in 2010. The team that used the most empty backfields was quite a surprise: Buffalo. Yes, the team whose strongest position going into the season was running back used nobody in the backfield more than any other team. They weren't particularly successful either. In general, empty backfield plays are very successful, with an overall 16.6% DVOA. Buffalo, however, had just -3.7% DVOA. The Bills were also a bit of an aberration because they were the only team that used empty backfields more than eight percent of the time and didn't make the playoffs.

Empty backfield, of course, doesn't necessarily mean no running backs in the personnel. The Patriots, for example, had Kevin Faulk or Danny Woodhead on the field for nearly all of their empty-backfield plays. The Bills usually had C.J. Spiller or Fred Jackson split out wide, and sometimes both.

I've ranked teams in Yards per Play and DVOA as long as they used empty backfields on at least 2.5 percent of plays.