Wednesday, November 7, 2012

The Art of 51 in the NFL

There is a very simple NFL equation for winning that is often attributed to Bill Parcells named "The Art of 51".  The equation is completed passes + positive rushing attempts > 51 = win.

Obviously if both teams have above or below 51, the team with the higher number usually wins the game.  Another way to look at "The Art of 51" is that it is a two team, head-to-head race to 51.

I know the equation seems elementary, but since we have no Packer game to look forward to because this is their bye week, let's see how "The Art of 51" played out so far for the 2012 Green Bay Packers:
- Week #1: Packers (44) lost to the 49ers (52)
- Week #2: Packers (51) beat the Bears (34)
- Week #3: Packers (47)  "lost" to the Seahawks (39)
- Week #4: Packers (56) beat the Saints (54)
- Week #5: Packers (54) lost to the Colts (61)
- Week #6: Packers (55) beat the Texans (50)
- Week #7: Packers (56) beat the Rams (43)
- Week #8: Packers (48) beat the Jaguars (47)
- Week #9: Packers (53) beat the Cardinals (41)

As you can see, "The Art of 51" has held for the 2012 Green Bay Packers so far this year.  The equation went 8 for 9 if you believe the Packers actually lost to the Seahawks and 9 for 9 if you are a rationale non-Seahawks sports fan.

Consider this is amuse-bouche to the main course this weekend.  Check back this weekend for my mid-season rankings of the 2012 Green Bay Packers 53-man roster.

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