The 2015 NFL Postseason is set to begin this weekend, with Super Bowl 50 on the line. We need to figure out which teams have the best chance of advancing in the postseason, given the possible match-ups. Furthermore, we need to also pick the postseason games effectively so we can have a chance to win the 2015 Pick’em championship. After winning 18 of 22 postseason games from the previous two postseasons, we know at least one way to achieve this. Therefore, over the next four days, we will detail the Four Postseason Factors as it relates to the 12 current NFL playoff teams. We’ll start this analysis today with the first factor, which is “team balance.”
We previously explained the factor as such:
We looked in depth at relevant efficiency statistics to determine the quality of a team in each key area of the game. We look at stats to paint a picture for six key areas: pass offense, pass defense, run offense, run defense, scoring efficiency and battle-tested quality play. The first four areas are quite simple to understand. The last two are a bit more complex. Special teams is heavily considered for scoring efficiency. Strength of schedule is heavily considered for battle-tested quality play.
For today’s analysis, we will look at the statistical rankings for five key stats in each of the six key areas that make up “team balance.” Using a mean rank of the five given key stats will allow us to see where teams are efficient in any of the six key areas. Once placing all six mean ranks into one table, we’ll see which of the 12 teams possess the balance of a Super Bowl contender.
We will go area by area to see how certain teams satisfy our contender qualifications and how others fall short. This way, we can see which strengths and weakness come into play. Understand that this part of the study is crucially important, as different match-up advantages or disadvantages may arise when facing a different opponent.
Now let’s get to work. We will start with the passing game, looking at the offense first and the defense second. The next focus will be on the ground game, as we examine the offense third and the defense fourth. Finally, we’ll analyze the more complex factors, addressing scoring efficiency fifth and battle-tested quality play sixth. The final page will summarize all of our findings.