Table of contents for Issue 66 in Gridiron

THE BIG PICTURE HE’S BACK! Cam Newton screams ‘I’m back’ after running in a touchdown against the Arizona Cardinals with his first touch of the ball in his second spell with the Carolina Panthers. Newton, the first-overall pick in the 2011 Draft who took Carolina to Super Bowl 50, returned to the Panthers following an injury to Sam Darnold but was unable to lead his team to victories in either of his first two starts.…

THE PLAYBOOK MONEYBALL The way depth charts are ordered makes us think of teams in terms of starters and backups. However, this is increasingly an inaccurate way of looking at how rosters are utilised. We accept the notion of ‘running back by committee’, where teams deploy two or three backs fairly evenly throughout a game, while we understand that a number of wide receivers see action. And, as our data expert explains, there is now an increased usage of multiple edge rushers too. EDGE RUSH ROTATION TOM KISLINGBURY CONTRIBUTOR @TomKislingbury ROTATION IN 2021 At the time of writing, the average NFL defense had played 626 defensive snaps, but just five edge rushers had played 500 or more snaps, and only 36 players in those positions had played at least 400…

BEST ROUTE-RUNNERS Meet the men who leave defensive backs tied in knots and chasing shadows. DAVANTE ADAMS PFF GRADE: 91.5 Arguably the best wideout in the league full stop. Packers teammate Allen Lazard once told Sky Sports that Adams’ feet should be “registered weapons”, such is his ability to trick defenders with his hop release. Adams also has a near telepathic understanding with Aaron Rodgers. STEFON DIGGS PFF GRADE: 83.6 An absolute master at changing direction. When Diggs sticks his foot in the ground, defensive backs can’t help but believe he is going one way, only to be left grasping at air when Diggs heads in the other. Diggs can beat men deep too with an impressive stop-start quickness. KEENAN ALLEN PFF GRADE: 80.0 Able to line up either inside…

GRIDIRON’S TOP FIVE QBs Assessing the best quintet of quarterbacks in the league at the moment. TOM BRADY 2021 STATS: 3,771 YRDs, 34 TDs, 10 INTs What more is there to say about the man who ages like a fine wine? A three-time MVP already, the 44-year-old Buccaneers signal-caller leads the league in passing TDs and is averaging 314.3 yards per game – the second-best figure of his long, illustrious career. AARON RODGERS 2021 STATS: 2,878 YRDs, 23 TDs, 4 INTs Rodgers and Brady are the only active multiple MVP winners in the entire league. Green Bay’s QB proved in 2020 that he’s far from finished and while his long-term future with the Packers remains unclear, he’s surely destined for Canton regardless. PATRICK MAHOMES 2021 STATS: 3,384 YRDs, 25 TDs,…

CARLSON’S GOATs THE BEST QB SHARES Every team is striving for that QB1, but there have been have plenty of times in NFL history when two signal-callers have shared the sport’s most prestigious positions with great success. Iron Mike looks at some of the best QB shares. MIKE CARLSON CONTRIBUTOR @carlsonsports “When you have two quarterbacks, you don’t have one.” That quote is typically attributed to John Madden, and it is genuinely assumed to mean two ‘starting’ quarterbacks, implying that it is the difficulty of choosing which creates the problem. But there have been numerous moments when teams have deployed a pair of quarterbacks to great effect. Even this season we’ve seen several variations on that theme, most notably when teams have used a backup quarterback as a change of…

PICK SIX Liam Blackburn provides the lowdown on Issue 66 of Gridiron, which focuses on Allen, Tagovailoa, Jackson and Moss’ Minnesota misery. LIAM BLACKBURN HEAD OF NFL @llamblackburn THE KEEN MACHINE As I sit here writing this column in early December, I can’t predict which teams will be playing in Super Bowl LVI with any confidence, while different MVP candidates seem to shoot themselves in the foot from week to week. It’s been one of the most unpredictable NFL seasons I can remember, so it’s nice to have a model of consistency as the cover star of Issue 66. Los Angeles Chargers wideout Keenan Allen is in the top 10 for receiving yards again, has more receptions than all but one player (Cooper Kupp) and is on course for his…

MAN-TO-MAN Our man Neil Reynolds catches up with one of the biggest stars in the NFL today in Vikings wide receiver Adam Thielen, a player who emerged from humble beginnings to become a touchdown machine in Minnesota. WITH ADAM THIELEN NEIL REYNOLDS CONTRIBUTOR @neilreynoldsnfl I first interviewed Adam Thielen on a beautiful, sunny day in Minnesota in the June of 2013. The Vikings had just completed a minicamp practice and we were rolling through some big-name interviews ahead of the team’s visit to London to face the Pittsburgh Steelers later that year. Everything was going swimmingly until a member of the Vikings’ public relations staff came up to me and said: “We’ve got this great kid you can interview. He played just down the road at Mankato and he’s a local…

THE PLAYBOOK COACHES’ CORNER X’S & O’S BREAKING DOWN THE BUFFALO BILLS Given they had a top-five offense and defense in both points and yardage through Week 12, the Buffalo Bills might just have the most well-rounded team in the NFL this season. What makes those units so good? And what will make or break their Super Bowl hopes this postseason? We got Jeff Reinebold to give us his thoughts. JEFF REINEBOLD CONTRIBUTOR @Jeff_Reinebold This Bills defense has taken a step forward from last year, but they also gave up 264 yards on the ground in the blowout loss to the Colts recently. What are the strengths and weaknesses of that unit? Star Lotulelei is such an important part of that interior run defense. Ed Oliver is not a really…

TUA TAGOVAILOA MIAMI’S MAIN MAN? The Miami Dolphins appeared set to give up on the player they wanted to be the heart of their rebuild only last year. But is Tua Tagovailoa beginning to finally live up to the hype? SIMON CLANCY LEAD FEATURE WRITER @SiClancy “THERE BECAME THIS NARRATIVE IN THE MEDIA AND AMONGST PART OF THE FANBASE THAT SOMEHOW HIS CAREER IN MIAMI WAS IN JEOPARDY. Perception is an interesting concept, especially in a world in which we’re so quick to make judgements. Something has to be great instantly, or it’s awful. There’s no middle ground. Yet often, those who go along with that initial reasoning haven’t, for better or worse, actually seen the thing they’re passing judgement on. They just read about it on Reddit or saw…

COLLEGE CAMPUS THE PUNT GOD One of the most electrifying players in all of college football this season has been a punter from San Diego State. Simon Clancy profiles Matt Araiza, the recordbreaking, big-legged Aztec who is already enjoying cult-hero status. SIMON CLANCY LEAD FEATURE WRITER @SiClancy “I NEVER EXPECTED TO FALL IN LOVE WITH PUNTING, BUT IT’S NOW MY FAVOURITE PART OF KICKING. When ‘The Punt God’ catches the ball, he’s standing around the eight-yard line. His own eight-yard line. His eyes light up in the split second before the ball hits his hands. The small crowd of just over 5,000 at Hawaii’s Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex are almost silent, expectant. On the television broadcast there is an air of ‘what’s about to happen’ from the commentary team.…

GRIDIRON TIMES Five Stories of the Month 5 HALL OF GAMER Free agent safety Kenny Vaccaro has called time on his NFL career to lead a new team into battle – literally! The 2013 first-round pick has launched an eSports organisation called ‘Gamers First’. While he is not the first NFL player to reveal a love of online gaming, former Saints and Titans defensive back Vaccaro is leading the way in shooting for a different crown, citing the Halo World Championship as his new Vince Lombardi Trophy. “This isn’t a reflex decision for me; it’s something I’ve thought about for a long time,” the 30-year-old said in a statement. “I’ve been a gamer for even longer than I’ve played football, and I’ve always thought of myself as a gamer first.…

THE PLAYBOOK ALL-STUDS/ALL-DUDS TEAMS MONEYBALL: ROTATING THE RUSH COACHES’ CORNER: THE BUFFALO BILLS WHAT’S TRENDING • The Dolphins have run play-action on 41 per cent of their dropbacks over the past five weeks – the highest rate in the NFL. • Baltimore have been in pistol formations for 32 per cent of their offensive snaps this season. No other offense has run it on more than 10 per cent of their offensive snaps. • The Seahawks have played base defense (four defensive backs on the field) on 42 per cent of their snaps this season. That’s the highest rate in the NFL. • Since Week Nine, Colts star Jonathan Taylor has amassed 422 rushing yards after contact. That’s more than any other running back has managed in total rushing yards.…

KEENAN ALLEN IN CHARGE No player has been with the Los Angeles Chargers for longer than Keenan Allen. Now in his ninth season with the AFC West franchise, the wide receiver talks to Gridiron about being snubbed on draft night, his defensive back mentality and why he wants you to keep overlooking him. LIAM BLACKBURN HEAD OF NFL @liamblackburn Keenan Allen’s ‘career highlights and awards’ section on Wikipedia is substantial. He was Pepsi NFL Rookie of the Year in 2013, Comeback Player of the Year in 2017 and has been voted to four Pro Bowls. No player has had more catches in their first 100 NFL games and Allen recently broke another league record with his ninth game of at least 12 receptions and 100 receiving yards. Prior to this…

LAMAR JACKSON THE EVOLUTION OF LAMAR JACKSON Baltimore Ravens QB Lamar Jackson has proven he is no one-season wonder or a flash in the pan. And, in the eyes of his coach, he’s an even better quarterback than he was during his MVP season. But can he elevate his game to finally make the Ravens Super Bowl contenders? LIAM BLACKBURN HEAD OF NFL @liamblackburn The story emerged three weeks before the 2021 NFL season began. “There are a lot of people around the league that I speak to, they’re talking a little slick,” ESPN reporter Jeremy Fowler revealed on a segment about the quarterbacks under the most pressure heading into the campaign. “They say this might be the year that everybody figures out Lamar Jackson. There’s sort of that feeling…

VIKINGS IN NUMBERS A look at the notable numbers in Minnesota’s marvellous year 15-1 MINNESOTA WERE THE FIRST TEAM TO GO 15-1 AND NOT WIN THE SUPER BOWL 556 POINTS SCORED BY THE 1998 VIKINGS, AN NFL RECORD AT THE TIME 22 PLAYS OF 40-PLUS YARDS MADE BY THE OFFENSE 17 TOUCHDOWN PASSES CAUGHT BY ROOKIE RANDY MOSS 106.0 THE LEAGUE-LEADING PASSER RATING FOR RANDALL CUNNINGHAM 100% GARY ANDERSON MADE ALL OF HIS 35 FIELD GOALS IN THE REGULAR SEASON 34 TURNOVERS FORCED BY THE DEFENSE – SIXTH-BEST IN THE NFL 5 VIKINGS WHO WERE NAMED FIRST-TEAM ALL-PROS. TEN WENT TO THE PRO BOWL…