Last week Advanced Touches detailed Adrian Peterson’s extraordinary ability after contact and documented his stunning improvement in Vision Yards. This week we’ll focus on a different set of advanced stats to put Peterson’s record pursuit under the microscope.
Purple Jesus currently sits at 1,812 yards with 1,009 of them coming on runs of 15-plus yards. That gives him a 55.7 Breakaway Percentage. The second highest number in the PFF era belongs to Chris Johnson (min. 150 attempts). When the NFL’s speed king cleared the 2,000-yard rushing barrier in 2009, he garnered 1,026 of those on long runs (50.4%). That a man of Peterson’s size and power can best Johnson in a category designed for the track star is a testament to the depth and breadth of AP’s astonishing accomplishment.
J.J. Watt would still be my MVP choice, but Peyton Manning's MVP momentum is a travesty when you consider the historical nature of Peterson's year and the impact it's had on a very mediocre Vikings squad.
Chan Gailey has recently come under fire in this column, but a closer examination of Peterson’s performance demonstrates the madness of Gailey’s strategic machinations. During a season which can be only described as already legendary, AP still trails C.J. Spiller in Elusive Rating by the rather sizeable margin of 99.9 to 73.3. A purported speed back, PFF credits Spiller with forcing only five fewer missed tackles on 130 fewer touches. It would be interesting to know what the Bills’ record would be if Spiller’s snap percentage hadn’t been below 55% in ten of the last 12 weeks.
Where We Find That Nothing Can Stop Adrian Peterson | ||||||||
Snaps | Touches | Elusive | Break | YCo/A | VYA | Routes | YPRR | |
Darren McFadden | 48 | 34 | 18.2 | 44.5 | 2.1 | 1.6 | 12 | 3.25 |
Alfred Morris | 57 | 29 | 40.6 | 0 | 2 | 1.2 | 21 | 0.29 |
Arian Foster | 62 | 29 | 49 | 49.7 | 4.7 | 1.4 | 31 | 0.13 |
B. Green-Ellis | 54 | 25 | 0 | 42.5 | 2 | 2.2 | 19 | 0 |
Matt Forte | 52 | 25 | 0 | 31.9 | 3.3 | 0.2 | 20 | 3.2 |
Adrian L. Peterson | 40 | 24 | 77.1 | 71.2 | 4.6 | 4.2 | 12 | 0 |
DeAngelo Williams | 41 | 24 | 28.4 | 0 | 2.3 | 1.9 | 9 | 5.67 |
Frank Gore | 53 | 23 | 0 | 18.1 | 2.1 | 1.9 | 13 | 2.62 |
Knowshon Moreno | 42 | 23 | 10.4 | 17.4 | 2.4 | 3.1 | 15 | 0.53 |
Chris D. Johnson | 58 | 21 | 27.2 | 77 | 5.7 | 0.1 | 22 | 0 |
Reggie Bush | 48 | 21 | 28.6 | 51 | 3 | 2 | 18 | 0 |
Steven Jackson | 43 | 21 | 89.4 | 20.5 | 4.7 | 0.9 | 24 | 3.04 |
C.J. Spiller | 58 | 20 | 70.6 | 33 | 1.8 | 4.3 | 27 | -0.07 |
Darren McFadden ended up with a decent fantasy day despite averaging 3.7 yards per carry against one of the NFL’s worst defenses. McFadden is averaging 1.91 yards after contact this season, worse than Mikel Leshoure. Only Rashad Jennings, Bilal Powell, and Beanie Wells trail McFadden among qualifying backs.
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