[aeneas1]

recently came across a post at another forum which championed the notion that stopping the run isn't only key, but it's what wins championships - everyone in the thread seemed to agree which isn't surprising given this threadbare cliche is often repeated by talking heads, even today.

i think the reason this misconception still has legs is because folks look at rush yards allowed, and don't consider that good teams usually take control by the 4th quarter, which forces their opponents to pass the ball a ton rather than run it, which of course results in fewer rush yards against the better teams, and the impression that the better teams are tough against the run, because they didn't allow a lot of rush yards.

but even when you look at rush yards allowed per rush attempt, i.e. you take the fourth quarter bias out of the equation, lower rush averages allowed still don't correlate well to winning teams, strong defenses, or low offensive points allowed.

2017 - top 10 teams in lowest yards per carry allowed:
- only 3 made the postseason.
- average ranking in offensive points allowed was 20th.

2017 - bottom 10 teams in lowest yards per carry allowed:
- 7 made the postseason.
- average ranking in offensive points allowed was 13th

how about yards allowed per pass attempt?

2017 - top 10 teams in lowest yards per pass attempt allowed:
- 4 made the postseason.
- average ranking in offensive points allowed was 10th.

2017 - bottom 10 teams in lowest yards per pass attempt allowed:
- 2 made the postseason.
- average ranking in offensive points allowed was 24th

it's a passing league - throw the ball well and stop the pass.