The effects are obvious. The dictators of the No Fun League are now seeing the consequences of this past 2011 offseason. After brushing up on my football highlights (long weekend for me) it's clear that the NFL has made the flip from defense heavy to offense heavy due to the lockout. Scores were outrageously high, unheard of offensive weapons were tearing it up, and defenses looked confused and tired, minus you Baltimore.
Here is a tweet from Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) that boggled my mind:
"NFL teams passed for 7,842 net yards and returned 8 kicks and punts for TDs. Both represent the most in any week in NFL history, via Elias."
Mind you, this includes stats from 2 and a half rookie quarterbacks; Newton, Dalton, and I still consider Stafford one since he hasn't seen a full season yet; that got very limited exposure before Week 1 and didn't include my fifth overall QB Peyton Mannthang. If you take a look at the stats from who I consider the top 4 quarterbacks (fifth being Manning) it sounds like I'm playing Madden on rookie level.
1)Tom Brady- 32 for 48; 517 Passing Yards for a 10.8 Average; 4 TD; 121.6 QB Rating
2)Aaron Rogers- 27 for 35; 312 Passing Yards for an 8.9 Yard Average; 3 TD; 132.1 QB Rating
3)Drew Brees- 32 for 49; 419 Passing Yards for an 8.6 Yard Average; 3 TD; 112.5 QB Rating
4)Philip Rivers- 33 for 48; 335 Passing Yards for a 7 Yard Average; 2 TD; 85.0 QB Rating
These guys were just throwing at will to whomever they wanted and it was working. But stats like these are expected of the elite quarterbacks throughout a season. What if I threw Harvard Alum and professional white person Ryan Fitzpatrick or the Sally-Mae I like to call Tony Romo into the mix? Add an additional 650 yards to the total pot. The biggest surprises have got to be Cam Newton and Matt Stafford though. Newton threw for an outrageous 422 Yards and 2 TD while Stafford had a seemingly easy 305 Yards and 3 TD. Quarterbacks all around really did look top-notch and were controlling defenses as to the direction of the game. ESPN wasn't messing around when they called 2011 the Year of the Quarterback.
(P.S. Don't even try and think Mike Vick is a top 5 QB. One of my favorite players of all time but read this article here by my friend Jay Gildea and educate yourself. #readabook)
The other heavy effect the Lockout had on players leading up to Week 1 and during those games were injuries. Steven Jackson, Dan Koppen, Marques Colston, Nate Kaeding, and Willie Colon all suffered serious injuries resulting in season-ending or long term IR time. I know the purpose of this new collective bargaining agreement was to make the game safer but no one considered the Lockout itself to be detrimental to the players. Nothing really prepares these players for a game-time hit, but training camps certainly do help them get comfortable. The most common injury throughout the league was a surprising one however; cramping. When offenses went to their no-huddle sets and kept the ball moving, defenses were winded, dehydrated, and suffered a lot of leg cramps. The shockers to me were the Houston Texans and Miami Dolphins especially. Playing in such hot weather all the time I would have thought the two teams would have been better conditioned.
It should certainly be an interesting 2011-2012 NFL season. After Week 1 I can't even think of playoff let alone Super Bowl predictions. I am rooting for Cam Newton Rookie of the Year though. Hopefully after Week 4 or so teams will start to gain their composure and the league might become more realistic.
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