SWC75
Bored Historian
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This has been a season for offense in the NFL. Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady and Drew Brees have all had amazing seasons and their team have all averaged 30 points a game- a rarity in the NFL, the highest level of football, the one with the best athletes. People think of size and athletic ability as helping the offense but I think it helps the defense even more. Defensive players have to react to what the offense is doing and still get there in time to stop them. Also, if the field remains the same size but the players become bigger and faster, the field effectively shrinks because the players can cover it better. That’s why the league keeps making rule to limit what the defense can do and help out the offense. In recent years those changes have paid dividends. I decided to look at the history of NFL teams averaging 30 points per game. It might show something about the history of the NFL.
I couldn’t make up my mind whether to just base it on the regular season or to include the playoffs so I did both. There were a couple of teams that didn’t average 30ppg in the regulars season but had a great post season that pushed them over, (although the 1940 Bears didn’t make despite winning the title game 73-0: they went from 21.6 to 25.9). A couple more barely averaged 30ppg in the regular season and fell under that in the post season. All are included, as are All-American Conference (1946-49) and American Football league, (1960-69) teams.
1920-1940 Nobody
1941 Bears 36.0 in the regular season, 35.8 including the post season.
1942 Bears 34.2/31.8
1943 Bears 30.3/31.3
1946 Browns 30.2/29.1
1947 Bears 30.3 (finished 2nd- no post season games)
1948 Eagles 31.3/29.5
1948 Cardinals 32.9/30.4
1948 Bears 31.3 (finished 2nd)
1948 49ers 35.4 (finished 2nd)
1949 Rams 30.0/27.7
1949 Cardinals 30.0 (finished 3rd)
1949 49ers 34.7/32.5
1950 Rams 38.8/37.0
1950 Yankees, (yes they were the New York Yankees, who moved over from the AAFC but didn’t last long) 30.5 (finished 3rd)
1951 Rams 32.7/32.0
1953 49ers 31.0 (finished 2nd)
1953 Rams 30.5 (finished 3rd)
1954 Browns 28.0/30.2
1956 Bears 30.1/28.5
1958 Colts 31.8/31.1
1959 Colts 31.2/31.2
1961 Oilers 36.6/34.9
1963 Chargers 28.5/30.0
1963 Giants 32.0/30.5
1965 49ers 30.1 (finished 4th)
1966 Chiefs 32.0/30.6
1966 Cowboys 31.8/31.5
1967 Raiders 33.4/ 32.6
1968 Raiders 32.4/32.3
1968 Cowboys 30.8/30.1
1975 Bills 30.0 (finished 3rd)
That’s it for the 70’s. There was one 30ppg team and they didn’t win anything.
1983 Redskins 33.8/32.9
1984 Dolphins 32.1/30.9
1987 49ers 30.6/30.2
1991 Redskins 30.3/30.9
1994 49ers 31.6/ 33.5
1998 Broncos 31.3/31.4
1998 Vikings 34.7/34.7
1999 Rams 32.9/32.1
2000 Broncos 30.3/28.7
2001 Rams 31.4/31.3
2003 Chiefs 30.3/30.3
2004 Colts 32.6/31.9
2006 Chargers 30.8/30.2
2007 Patriots 36.8/34.5
2009 Saints 31.9/32.5
2010 Patriots 32.4/31.7
2011 Packers 35.0/34.1
2011 Saints 34.2/ 34.7
2011 Patriots 32.1/32.8
Here is the all-time top ten scoring teams in NFL history, just using the regular season:
1950 Rams 38.8
2007 Patriots 36.8
1961 Oilers 36.6
1941 Bears 36.0
1948 49ers 35.4
2011 Packers 35.0
1949 49ers 34.7 and
1998 Vikings 34.7
1942 Bears 34.2 and
2011 Saints 34.2
If you include the post season:
1950 Rams 37.0
1941 Bears 35.8
1948 49ers 35.4
1961 Oilers 34.9
1949 49ers 34.7 and
1998 Vikings 34.7 and
2011 Saints 34.7
2007 Patriots 34.5
2011 Packers 34.1
1994 49ers 33.5
Comments: People may think that pro football has never been as exciting as it is today, with these wide-open high scoring offenses. In past decades, it must have been primitive and dull. But the decade with the most 30ppg teams is the 1940’s with 13 teams. The 50‘s and 60‘s are tied with 9: the 2000‘s are fourth with 7. But this decade is off to a great start with 4 such teams in just two years. By the 70’s defenses caught up with offenses and the only 30ppg team was an OJ Simpson Bills team that finished 3rd. They opened up a bit in the 80’s with 3 teams and in the 90’s with 5 teams. When Drew bees broke Dan Marino’s 1984 record for passing yardage in a season he said he respected what guys like Brees, Rogers and Brady had accomplished but that there were fewer limits on what defenders could do in the 80‘s and he wondered if they would be setting these records.
61 seasons later, the highest scoring team in NFL history is still the 1950 rams. If a team were to average 38.8 points over 16 games, they’d score 621 points today. Back then they played only 12 games and the Rams scored 466.
It’s also interesting to note that only 16 of the 51 30ppg teams won their league champions, although five of the other teams maintained that average when another 30ppg team did win the title and one other 30ppg team, (of three) is still alive this season. Two of the top 10 regular season scoring teams went on to win their league title and three of the top ten for the whole season did so. I guess defense still matters. .
I couldn’t make up my mind whether to just base it on the regular season or to include the playoffs so I did both. There were a couple of teams that didn’t average 30ppg in the regulars season but had a great post season that pushed them over, (although the 1940 Bears didn’t make despite winning the title game 73-0: they went from 21.6 to 25.9). A couple more barely averaged 30ppg in the regular season and fell under that in the post season. All are included, as are All-American Conference (1946-49) and American Football league, (1960-69) teams.
1920-1940 Nobody
1941 Bears 36.0 in the regular season, 35.8 including the post season.
1942 Bears 34.2/31.8
1943 Bears 30.3/31.3
1946 Browns 30.2/29.1
1947 Bears 30.3 (finished 2nd- no post season games)
1948 Eagles 31.3/29.5
1948 Cardinals 32.9/30.4
1948 Bears 31.3 (finished 2nd)
1948 49ers 35.4 (finished 2nd)
1949 Rams 30.0/27.7
1949 Cardinals 30.0 (finished 3rd)
1949 49ers 34.7/32.5
1950 Rams 38.8/37.0
1950 Yankees, (yes they were the New York Yankees, who moved over from the AAFC but didn’t last long) 30.5 (finished 3rd)
1951 Rams 32.7/32.0
1953 49ers 31.0 (finished 2nd)
1953 Rams 30.5 (finished 3rd)
1954 Browns 28.0/30.2
1956 Bears 30.1/28.5
1958 Colts 31.8/31.1
1959 Colts 31.2/31.2
1961 Oilers 36.6/34.9
1963 Chargers 28.5/30.0
1963 Giants 32.0/30.5
1965 49ers 30.1 (finished 4th)
1966 Chiefs 32.0/30.6
1966 Cowboys 31.8/31.5
1967 Raiders 33.4/ 32.6
1968 Raiders 32.4/32.3
1968 Cowboys 30.8/30.1
1975 Bills 30.0 (finished 3rd)
That’s it for the 70’s. There was one 30ppg team and they didn’t win anything.
1983 Redskins 33.8/32.9
1984 Dolphins 32.1/30.9
1987 49ers 30.6/30.2
1991 Redskins 30.3/30.9
1994 49ers 31.6/ 33.5
1998 Broncos 31.3/31.4
1998 Vikings 34.7/34.7
1999 Rams 32.9/32.1
2000 Broncos 30.3/28.7
2001 Rams 31.4/31.3
2003 Chiefs 30.3/30.3
2004 Colts 32.6/31.9
2006 Chargers 30.8/30.2
2007 Patriots 36.8/34.5
2009 Saints 31.9/32.5
2010 Patriots 32.4/31.7
2011 Packers 35.0/34.1
2011 Saints 34.2/ 34.7
2011 Patriots 32.1/32.8
Here is the all-time top ten scoring teams in NFL history, just using the regular season:
1950 Rams 38.8
2007 Patriots 36.8
1961 Oilers 36.6
1941 Bears 36.0
1948 49ers 35.4
2011 Packers 35.0
1949 49ers 34.7 and
1998 Vikings 34.7
1942 Bears 34.2 and
2011 Saints 34.2
If you include the post season:
1950 Rams 37.0
1941 Bears 35.8
1948 49ers 35.4
1961 Oilers 34.9
1949 49ers 34.7 and
1998 Vikings 34.7 and
2011 Saints 34.7
2007 Patriots 34.5
2011 Packers 34.1
1994 49ers 33.5
Comments: People may think that pro football has never been as exciting as it is today, with these wide-open high scoring offenses. In past decades, it must have been primitive and dull. But the decade with the most 30ppg teams is the 1940’s with 13 teams. The 50‘s and 60‘s are tied with 9: the 2000‘s are fourth with 7. But this decade is off to a great start with 4 such teams in just two years. By the 70’s defenses caught up with offenses and the only 30ppg team was an OJ Simpson Bills team that finished 3rd. They opened up a bit in the 80’s with 3 teams and in the 90’s with 5 teams. When Drew bees broke Dan Marino’s 1984 record for passing yardage in a season he said he respected what guys like Brees, Rogers and Brady had accomplished but that there were fewer limits on what defenders could do in the 80‘s and he wondered if they would be setting these records.
61 seasons later, the highest scoring team in NFL history is still the 1950 rams. If a team were to average 38.8 points over 16 games, they’d score 621 points today. Back then they played only 12 games and the Rams scored 466.
It’s also interesting to note that only 16 of the 51 30ppg teams won their league champions, although five of the other teams maintained that average when another 30ppg team did win the title and one other 30ppg team, (of three) is still alive this season. Two of the top 10 regular season scoring teams went on to win their league title and three of the top ten for the whole season did so. I guess defense still matters. .
