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Is the AFC South really the worst division in the league?

Discussion in 'Houston Texans' started by Nimo, Nov 7, 2016.

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  1. Svpernaut

    Svpernaut Contributing Member

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    I think the NFC North is in the running for the worst this year, but the AFC South has been pretty terrible for an extended period.
     
    #41 Svpernaut, Nov 13, 2016
  2. deb4rockets

    deb4rockets Contributing Member
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    The NFC has 2 teams with more than 5 wins. Our division plays the entire AFC West, which has 3 teams with 7 wins. That's more than the entire NFC. I don't care what anybody says if we can keep winning.
     
    #42 deb4rockets, Nov 13, 2016
  3. Nimo

    Nimo Member

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    I don't want to hear anybody tell me the AFC South is worse than the AFC North.
     
    #43 Nimo, Nov 15, 2016
    Bobbythegreat likes this.
  4. Mr. Clutch

    Mr. Clutch Contributing Member

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    Is this the worst quality football in the NFL in years?
     
    #44 Mr. Clutch, Nov 15, 2016
  5. Nick

    Nick Contributing Member

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    Restrictions on OTA activities, neutering pre-season games, and roster turnover has more of a profound impact than initially thought.

    Play gets better as the season goes on, no more evident than this season.
     
    #45 Nick, Nov 15, 2016
  6. Mr. Clutch

    Mr. Clutch Contributing Member

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    Yeah, they have to fix this. I find myself watching random NBA games more than evening NFL
     
    #46 Mr. Clutch, Nov 15, 2016
  7. FTW Rockets FTW

    FTW Rockets FTW Contributing Member

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    Well NBA >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Eggball

    So you're making the smart decision.
     
    #47 FTW Rockets FTW, Nov 15, 2016
    Mr. Clutch likes this.
  8. Svpernaut

    Svpernaut Contributing Member

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    They need to cut back the number of preseason games. The amount of injuries the past few seasons is absolutely insane. These guys train year round, they don't need a crazy camp anymore. Training camp used to be for the fat and lazy players who would come back and get their butts into shape in the 60s through early 90s. That crap isn't the case anymore.

    Personally, I don't think they should have full contact drills in the preseason outside of the games. The guys make too much money, and are so athletically tuned that one wrong turn can literally blow up a joint because of their sheer power.
     
    #48 Svpernaut, Nov 15, 2016
  9. Nimo

    Nimo Member

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    Training camp and OTAs don't excuse all the missed field goals
     
    #49 Nimo, Nov 15, 2016
  10. Rowdy4Life

    Rowdy4Life Member

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    I have a tendency to agree with your assessment that these players train year round however I do believe the restrictions on full pads in Training Camp and practice in general has clearly shown itself in actual gameplay. There is a bunch of poor tackling and I believe there is a direct correlation.
     
    #50 Rowdy4Life, Nov 15, 2016
  11. FTW Rockets FTW

    FTW Rockets FTW Contributing Member

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    It's the worst division in all of sports, not just eggball and perhaps entire sports history. Just like the Southwest Division where the Rockets play is the best division in all of sports.

    English Football League Division 4 has more competition than this AFC crap division and my 24 hr pick up games are more competitive.
     
    #51 FTW Rockets FTW, Nov 16, 2016
  12. Svpernaut

    Svpernaut Contributing Member

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    I think poor tackling is more a sign of poor coaching. Full contract practice helps, but technique and discipline is far more important. If you'll notice, the Texans defense and special teams are much better at tackling this year:

    DEFENSE: Yards after Catch
    • The Texans defense is behind only the Broncos in YAC efficiency (source)
    • Their 2016 YAC is 15.4% improved over last season, 90.8 vs 107.4 (source)
    • This is the case, even without their defense being decimated by injuries (especially the secondary)
    DEFENSE: Rushing
    • The Texans Average Yardage Per Rushing Attempts for 2016 is currently at 4.3
    • In 2015 they were at 4.1 Average Yardage Per Rushing Attempts
    I think we can all agree that JJ Watt has everything to do with that slight downturn. I'd wager that their run defense with JJ Watt this year, would be much better than last season's 4.1 average per attempt. With an unhealthy JJ Watt in the first two games:
    • They allowed just 3.63 yards per carry against the Bears
    KICK COVERAGE:
    • In 2015 the Texans allowed 24.4 yards per kick return, and in 2016 they are allowing 21.9 yards per kick return, an improvement of 10.24% (source)
     
    #52 Svpernaut, Nov 16, 2016
  13. Bennie Anders

    Bennie Anders Member

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    The last Ezekiel Elliott TD against Pittsburgh shows the new NFL in all its "glory." Beautiful athletes who have no intention of risking injury, and thus cash, to stick their head into the hole to sell out to make a tackle.
     
    #53 Bennie Anders, Nov 17, 2016
  14. Nick

    Nick Contributing Member

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    It was also tremendous blocking with the defense in an absolute terrible pre-set formation to make a play.
     
    #54 Nick, Nov 17, 2016
  15. Wolverrines

    Wolverrines Member

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    #55 Wolverrines, Nov 17, 2016
  16. liveguy

    liveguy Member

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    Yes.
     
    #56 liveguy, Nov 17, 2016
  17. conundrum

    conundrum Rookie

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    #57 conundrum, Nov 17, 2016
  18. PhiSlammaJamma

    PhiSlammaJamma Member

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    Interesting that Titans now have 4 lineman ranked in the Top 15. Lewan being near bat crazy, but #1.
     
    #58 PhiSlammaJamma, Nov 18, 2016
  19. Nimo

    Nimo Member

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    http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-afc-south-is-not-that-bad/

    The AFC South Is Not That Bad
    It’s easy to pick on the AFC South, a division in which the quality of play has been on a steady decline for years. For the second consecutive season, no team in the division has a winning record after 12 games. Since the NFL realigned divisions in 2002, this is only the sixth time1 that a division has had no winning teams this late in the season; this year’s AFC South joins the 2015 NFC East, last year’s AFC South, the 2014 NFC South, the 2010 NFC West and the 2004 NFC West. But despite a well-earned reputation for mediocrity, the NFL’s most-maligned division may not be as hopeless as you think.

    We know the Jaguars are bad. Jacksonville is 2-10, with one of the worst offenses in the NFL: It has scored just 127 points in the first three quarters of games this year, tied with the Rams for the lowest total in the NFL. (In the fourth quarter, Jacksonville has scored 97 points, seventh-most in the NFL, but many of those points were meaningless.2) The team has lost seven consecutive games, and quarterback Blake Bortles has the most interceptions in the NFL after leading the league in that metric during the 2015 season.

    But the other AFC South teams are all 6-6, and overall, the division is 13-21 in non-division games. That’s not great, but there are two other NFL divisions that have done even worse:

    DIVISION NO. OF TEAMS WINS LOSSES TIES WIN PERCENTAGE
    AFC North 4 11 22 1 33.8%
    NFC West 4 12 22 0 35.3
    AFC South 4 13 21 0 38.2
    NFC North 4 16 18 0 47.1
    NFC South 4 16 18 0 47.1
    AFC East 4 19 15 0 55.9
    NFC East 4 23 10 1 69.1
    AFC West 4 25 9 0 73.5
    Division records versus non-division opponents
    Ties count as half a win when calculating win percentage

    SOURCE: PRO-FOOTBALL-REFERENCE.COM

    To be sure, there is low-hanging fruit if you want to focus on the negatives: The Houston Texans have a terrible passing game,3 while the Indianapolis Colts’ defense ranks 30th in Football Outsiders’ Defense-adjusted Value Over Average ratings.4 On paper, the Tennessee Titans appear to be the best of the bunch (or, at least, have no obvious weaknesses as severe as Houston’s or Indianapolis’s), but Tennessee can’t quite seem to get over the hump. The Titans are 0-3 against the Colts and Texans and have lost every game this year when a win would have given them a winning record.

    The AFC South has been hammered by the AFC West this season, posting a pitiful 2-11 record against teams in that division. Otherwise, though, AFC South teams have a winning record, going 8-6 against the NFC North and 3-4 against teams in all other divisions. So let’s focus on the good.
    ...
     
    #59 Nimo, Dec 13, 2016
    Zacatecas likes this.
  20. PhiSlammaJamma

    PhiSlammaJamma Member

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    Not only that, but technically there is still a 20% chance the Titans or Texans get the #2 seed. It's still on the table. And there are at least two scenarios where both teams get into the playoffs...and play each other.
     
    #60 PhiSlammaJamma, Dec 14, 2016
    Last edited: Dec 14, 2016
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