Thursday, January 1, 2009

DeAngelo's hidden great stat

Happy New Year, everyone! I really appreciate all of you who check in on "Scott Says" and to The Charlotte Observer. This blog has been a lot of fun -- we only started it in September, if you remember -- and I really enjoy reading all your comments. I'm going to try and refer to more of them in the blog this coming year (you can also e-mail me directly at sfowler@charlotteobserver.com).

I got this e-mail from alert reader Jason Nark, who wrote: "I believe one of Deangelo’s most impressive accomplishments has gone unnoticed by the local and national media. I think he has the highest amount of single season rushing yards without a fumble. I’d take Deangelo’s 1500 yards and 0 fumbles over Adrian Peterson’s 1800 yards and 9 fumbles. Any day."

You know what? In this case, I would, too. Peterson led the NFL in both rushing yardage (1760) and fumbles (9). And of those 9 fumbles, 6 came in December! You think a few Philadelphia Eagles are going to try to strip him this weekend?

Of the 16 NFL rushers who gained more than 1,000 yards this season, only DeAngelo and LaDainian Tomlinson never fumbled on a rushing carry. Here's a list of the most notable fumblers who gained 1,000 yards:

1. Peterson (Min) 9 fumbles
2. Frank Gore (SF) 6
3. Steven Jackson (StL) 5
4. Ryan Grant (GB) 4

And the 1,000-yard rushers who fumbled least:

1. DeAngelo and LT.... 0
Tied for third: Jamal Lewis (CLE), Matt Forte (Chi) and Chris Johnson (Ten) 1

Note: Clinton Portis and Atlanta's Michael Turner, the other 2 RBs along with Peterson selected instead of DeAngelo to the Pro Bowl, each had 3 fumbles this season.

So thanks to Jason for pointing this tidbit out. If you want to take a closer look at the stats for all RBs in the league, try this link.

11 comments:

JP62623 said...

Hey guys -GREAT observation. While it's hard for us armchair QB's to quantify the value of NOT fumbling - i am SURE his teammates recognize and appreciate his ability to hold onto the rock!

John said...

Oh man, did you HAVE to bring this up now? Why not wait until after the Super Bowl? ;-) If DWill fumbles in the next game it's all YOUR fault!

Jason said...

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK

Chris said...

Way to put the Jinx on....

Unknown said...

That stat was for the regular season... Can't jinx what has already happened. Be positive. Believe!

Unknown said...

There's a reason he only has had 2 fumbles in his career: DeAngelo knows how to take care of the ball. I don't think whatever puny superstitions you have will magically transform the way he carries it.

You could tell after the GB game that he (or somebody) coached up Stewart as well. If you have a chance look back and see how he was carrying it at the beginning of the year versus the end of the year. Big difference.

MichaelProcton said...

Chris, I don't think it's fair to fault Stewart about the fumble@GB. He wasn't getting in the game very often, and he cramped up. Not something he should have done, yes, but when you're in that kind of pain, I'm sure it's tough to make ball protection your priority.

IRONMAN said...

Its bad luck to be superstitious.

Unknown said...

I should start calling you Vern Lindquist.

"And here's such and such lining up for a 42 yard field goal. He's never missed under 40 yards. Here's the snap, and the kick, .......missed!"

I can't tell you how many times that man has jinxed a kicker!

Fezzzzzzzzzzz said...

This is a Jinx Tom...why did you write about this :-(

Nuke LaLoosh said...

Yeah, jinxes really exist.

Here's another POV on the topic from my blog on 12/29/08...

Scott, if you have the ability to put this contradiction in front of Peter King, I'd be forever grateful...

Nuke

http://158point3.blogspot.com/2008/12/inconsistencies-of-peter-kings-mvp.html