fuego Posted January 7, 2013 Share Posted January 7, 2013 After a trip to Falcons training camp in August, I wrote this for the SI NFL preview:Before a Falcons training camp practice this summer, new Atlanta offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter pondered a statistic that, in part, made the Falcons want to breathe some new life into their offensive philosophy. Last season, Koetter was told, deep-threat wide receiver Julio Jones was 38th in the NFL in average depth of passing target -- meaning that 37 receivers in the NFL were targeted further past the line of scrimmage than Jones. And though Jones did make the most out of his chances, averaging 17.8 yards per reception, the Falcons wanted Matt Ryan airing out a couple of deep shots a game to him. Koetter took in the information, said the offense seemed pretty explosive to him, and went back to work.That afternoon, the offense and defense had a spirited 15-minute 11-on-11 competition at the end of practice. The first throw, from Ryan to Jones, was a deep out along the left sideline; gain of about 35. A few minutes later, Jones took a corner one-on-one deep to the post, and Ryan led him with a perfect 65-yard rainbow.When practice was over, Koetter left the practice field and said with a grin: "I don't think Julio's going to be 38th in that stat this year.''He wasn't. He was 39th.According to ProFootballFocus.com, which measures all things NFL except for the height of grass at each stadium, Jones' average depth of target fell from 13.2 yards downfield in 2011 to 12.8 yards this season. But it doesn't mean Matt Ryan just dinked-and-dunked with Jones. It means the Falcons threw a lot more screen passes to running backs and wide receivers this year -- something Koetter also emphasized more than his predecessor, Mike Mularkey.Read More: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/nfl/news/20130107/peter-king-monday-morning-quarterback-nfl-playoffs-wild-card/#ixzz2HKX8lwKM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sui_Generis Posted January 7, 2013 Share Posted January 7, 2013 (edited) Screens. I wonder what his YAC was? Edited January 7, 2013 by Sui_Generis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AtlantaFalconPokerPro Posted January 7, 2013 Share Posted January 7, 2013 Just doesn't seem accurate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slamee101 Posted January 7, 2013 Share Posted January 7, 2013 Yea, I was about to say a lot of that has to do with the WR screens we threw to him. Something we didn't do under Mularkey because we didn't have the personnel. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HouseofEuphoria Posted January 7, 2013 Share Posted January 7, 2013 Just more proof that stats are pretty meaningless. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PapaJoe Posted January 7, 2013 Share Posted January 7, 2013 And that threat of the WR Screen to Julio opened up some passes to other players. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Brasky Posted January 7, 2013 Share Posted January 7, 2013 Just more proof that stats are pretty meaningless.Stats are not meaningless. The problem is that a lot of people misinterpret stats or twist them to fit their opinion. You just have to dig deeper than face value on a lot of them to get the true meaning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HouseofEuphoria Posted January 7, 2013 Share Posted January 7, 2013 Stats are not meaningless. The problem is that a lot of people misinterpret stats or twist them to fit their opinion. You just have to dig deeper than face value on a lot of them to get the true meaning.Wins and Losses are the only ones that really matter.Everything else is just fodder for ESPN "experts", Fantasy guys, and gamblers to try and predetermine an outcome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AtlantaFalconPokerPro Posted January 7, 2013 Share Posted January 7, 2013 Stats are not meaningless. The problem is that a lot of people misinterpret stats or twist them to fit their opinion. You just have to dig deeper than face value on a lot of them to get the true meaning.Stats are very telling if you know how to read them, and intercept them. Some people put more weight into a specific stat than they should. Check this out, go and look at the game summary stats for the Packers/Vikings game. You'd never guess by looking at them that GB had won so easily. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kaptain Krazy Posted January 8, 2013 Share Posted January 8, 2013 the offensive playcalling is more diverse this year - opposing defenses have to gameplan for more, and on the field have to be prepared for more. also, DK has shown the ability to design one play with the idea of setting up something else. that's what i'm excited to see in the playoffs. in the case of Julio, i think we may see some evolutions of the reverse plays they've run for JJ. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butudontseeme™ Posted January 8, 2013 Share Posted January 8, 2013 I find myself asking, what the heck for this really mean. My first reaction is that Atlanta doesn't live and die with the homerun ball. My second reaction is that Julio must be a pretty well rounded receiver with excellent versatility to have such a mediocre number in this stat. It's obvious he can do it all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattM12 Posted January 8, 2013 Share Posted January 8, 2013 i'd argue it's a good thing if his targets went up, especially on short yardage situations. He is becoming more of an option in all situations, and I like that. Who are the 38 above him, are they all great players? I assume CJ is up there as he is just a freak, but is it all quality? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pzummo Posted January 8, 2013 Share Posted January 8, 2013 Those screen passes are counted as -2 yards when averaging their downfield targets. I'm not complaining. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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