Ranking the Best Units in Football- Part 1

Passing Offenses 

 

Honorable Mentions: Cincinnati Bengals, New Orleans Saints

 

Green Bay Packers

Surprisingly, the Packers were not one of the league’s better passing attacks in 2015. But in fairness to Aaron Rodgers, he was without his top receiver in Jordy Nelson and they faced one of the league’s toughest defensive schedules. However, since Green Bay has consistently ranked in the top five in yards per attempt since 2010, I like them to bounce back in 2016.

 

4 Seattle Seahawks 

Thanks to a torrid stretch late in the year, Russell Wilson finished with the league’s highest passer rating. Seattle’s passing game also ranked in the top three in DVOA and yards per attempt. Wilson can’t necessarily expect another late season run of 24 TD’s and 1 INT, but the Seahawks should once again be one of the league’s tougher teams to stop through the air.

 

3 Pittsburgh Steelers

If everyone could stay on the field, the Steelers probably have the league’s most dangerous passing attack. Yet with suspensions to Martavis Bryant and, possibly, Le’Veon Bell, that won’t be the case. Nonetheless, Ben Roethlisberger and company still finished 2nd in yards per pass attempt and in the top five in DVOA and Total QBR in 2015. They’ll be fine again in 2016.

 

2 New England Patriots

Even with injuries to key players like Julian Edelman, Dion Lewis, and Nate Soldier, Tom Brady still managed to lead the NFL in TD/INT ratio and have the Patriots passing offense rank among the league’s best. New England’s passing game finished 4th in DVOA and led the NFL in passing yards percentage, which indicates that the Patriots were more reliant on their passing game than any other team.

 

1 Arizona Cardinals

The Cardinals have a slight edge over the rest of the league’s prolific passing attacks heading into 2016. Carson Palmer is coming off a career year in which he led the NFL in Total QBR by a mile. Moreover, Arizona led the NFL in yards per attempt (8.0), which is arguably the most important passing category to lead. They were also third in passing DVOA and third in passing yards per game as well.

 

Rushing Offenses

 

Honorable Mentions: Buffalo Bills, Carolina Panthers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers 

 

5 Pittsburgh Steelers

Even without the services of Le’Veon Bell for a majority of last season, the Steelers running game was actually better in 2015 than it was in 2014. After finishing 12th in rushing offense according to DVOA and 17th in yards per rush attempt with a healthy Bell in 2014, the Steelers ranked 4th and 6th in those categories this past year with DeAngelo Williams shouldering most of the load. Credit to Pittsburgh’s run blocking, which has ranked very highly in Adjusted Line Yards each of the last two years.

 

4 Seattle Seahawks

Talk about consistency: After leading the NFL in yards per rush attempt in 2014, the Seahawks finished tied for sixth in that same category in 2015. Their offensive line also ranked as the 4th best run-blocking team for the second year in a row. No Marshawn Lynch, no problem!

 

3 Minnesota Vikings

Statistically speaking, the Vikings running game doesn’t rank quite as highly as you might expect: They were “only” 8th in rushing DVOA last year. But the numbers don’t tell the whole story. With Adrian Peterson in the backfield, defenses must constantly keep an extra defender or two in the box. Otherwise, Peterson will do this.

 

2 Dallas Cowboys

There’s a school of thought the Cowboys are the best team to play for if you are a running back. For instance, DeMarco Murray was able to lead the league in rushing in 2014 and then fell off a cliff after signing with Philadelphia. Additionally, Darren McFadden was able to put together his first 1,000 yard season since 2010 in his first year with the Cowboys last season. Even though we don’t know what to expect from first round pick Ezekiel Elliott, he’ll at least be running behind one of the best offensive lines in football: Pro Bowl tackle Tyron Smith and others have helped Cowboys running backs gain the most yards since 2014.

 

 Kansas City Chiefs

This might come as a surprise, but consider this: Kansas City clearly had the best rushing attack according to DVOA in 2015 despite losing their top back in Jamaal Charles early in the season. Until proven otherwise, I have to give the Chiefs rushing game the respect they deserve.

 

Total Offenses

 

Honorable Mentions: Carolina Panthers, Cincinnati Bengals, Dallas Cowboys 

 

 Green Bay Packers

The NFL is a passing league, which means that even though teams like Minnesota and Kansas City can run the ball very effectively, the most dangerous teams are almost always the ones that can beat you through the air. With Aaron Rodgers under center, the Packers are certainly one of those squads.

 

4 Pittsburgh Steelers

I would’ve ranked the Steelers even higher, considering they are one of the leagues best passing and rushing teams and finished second in yards per play in 2015. Yet without Bryant, their number two receiver, the Steelers passing attack isn’t quite as deep as before. I’ll hesitantly leave them outside of the top three.

 

3 Seattle Seahawks

You can make an argument that Seattle has the best offense in football. After all, they did finish first in total offense according to Football Outsiders. However, they were only 8th in points per game and had one of the shakiest pass-blocking units. For those reasons, I have them settled at number three.

 

2 New England Patriots

New England finished 5th and 3rd respectively in DVOA and points per game in 2015, and those figures don’t account for all the injuries they suffered. Plus, the Patriots have consistently had one of the league’s best offenses for a decade. Simply put, there’s no indication that Rob Gronkowski and the Patriots won’t continue to be one of the NFL’s most prolific teams, particularly when Tom Brady returns.

 

1 Arizona Cardinals

Arizona may not be as well-rounded offensively as teams like Seattle and Pittsburgh. However, based on the strength of their passing game, they deserve to be considered the league’s best offense because they finished first in yards per play during the 2015 regular season, which is arguably the best indicator of the true strength of an offense.

Posted by Mando

Co-Founder of Check Down Sports. Die-hard Boston sports fan (Patriots, Celtics, Bruins, Red Sox -- in that order). Expert on all things related to the Super Bowl. Proudest life achievement: four-time fantasy baseball champion.

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