One of the great quests of football analytics is to come

up with a good way to compare the values of positions in the NFL. This is quite difficult Elgton Jenkins Jersey , and there is shockingly little consensus as to just what makes an offense or defense tick. In 2006 Michael Lewis followed up “Moneyball” with “The Blind Side,” which blended the story of offensive tackle Michael Oher with support for the notion that left tackles were extremely important, perhaps second only to the quarterbacks they protect. Subsequent research, however, has shown that sacks correlate more with who the quarterback is than who is playing on the line.I don’t doubt that left tackle is extremely important, but it’s probably not as important as Lewis’s book posited. There are also a lot of very smart analysts and thinkers who claim that pass rush is the most important aspect of defense, and that edge rushers are consequently the most important players on defense. This makes a lot of sense intuitively, but there is some research that suggests the secondary actually aids the pass rush more than pass rush aids the secondary, which would make corners more important. I happen to believe that corner is more important in the current NFL, but I could be wrong, and in reality you need both aspects to succeed for a defense to succeed.The various pieces of a football team work as an integrated unit, and it’s difficult to analyze those pieces as separate entities, but even though we don’t know everything, we do know a few things. Quarterback dwarfs the value of all other positions. Running backs are the least valuable players by a substantial margin. That’s all I’d say we know for sure. We think safeties are less valuable than many other positions (mostly because as corners age they often become safeties, meaning there is a healthy supply of safeties available), inside linebackers seem to be less valuable, and offensive guards are less valuable than offensive tackles, but that’s about it, and if research overturned any of this, I wouldn’t be too shocked.The position that you almost never see discussed is wide receiver. I suspect receivers are underrated, and that they are almost certainly the second-most important position group on offense and maybe overall. The 2018 Packers had holes at outside linebacker, safety Dexter Williams Jersey , and tight end, but the biggest issue for the offense (after Rodgers) was a lack of depth at receiver behind Davante Adams. Receiver has been an issue since 2015, and when the offense has rebounded, it’s because they have had at least three above average receivers. When they’ve struggled, it’s been a one man show.The One Man ShowThe worst year of Aaron Rodgers’ career wasn’t actually 2018, it was 2015. The primary cause of those struggles was the loss of Jordy Nelson. This, in and of itself, should lend a ton of support to the idea that receivers are extremely important. The loss of Nelson left Rodgers with Randall Cobb, who had a terrible year as the go-to receiver, a still-green Davante Adams who missed time with injuries, and the return of James Jones, who was fine. That’s a bad group. The following year, in 2016, Rodgers had his best recent season. His completion percentage jumped from 60.7% to 65.7%, his Y/A jumped from an awful 6.7 to 7.3 (which still isn’t great), and his TDs jumped from 31 to 40, with no real uptick in interceptions. The reason for that jump in production has almost nothing to do with Rodgers, and everything to do with the return of Jordy Nelson, the growth of Davante Adams, and late in the season, the addition of Jared Cook at tight end. Randall Cobb saw his catch percentage shoot up as well, as the defense’s attention focused elsewhere.Rodgers was hurt for most of 2017 Vince Biegel Color Rush Jersey , but it’s clear that the loss of Cook and some decline from Nelson hurt, even in limited action. In 2018, the failure of Jimmy Graham to replace Cook’s production combined with the injury to Geronimo Allison left the team without enough real weapons. While Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Equanimeous St. Brown had nice seasons for late-round rookies, they were not true “number two” (or “number three”) receivers. Rodgers relied heavily on Adams in the passing game, and while Adams is great and produced nice counting stats, he wasn’t efficient as he finished 30th in DVOA. There is a cliche that defenders/defensive coaches use with great wide receivers: “We’re fine if they get their yards, but we can’t let them beat us.” That’s exactly what happened with Adams in 2018. Knock-On EffectsWhen Lewis wrote “The Blind Side” he focused on all of the positive externalities produced by a good left tackle. He gives the quarterback time which allows receivers to get open. He keeps the quarterback from taking hits, and therefore from getting hurt. He is also crucial to the run game. In short, Lewis claimed that left tackles make everyone better. Receivers are, debatably, more responsible for each one of these. A receiver who flashes open early in his route will allow the quarterback to throw before the pass rush becomes an issue. A group of good receivers will drag defenders out of the box, opening up the running game. And the more good receivers you have on your team, the better each one’s matchups will be.This season, Adams found himself facing top corners with routine. Darius Slay, Kyle Fuller, and Xavier Rhodes all play in the division, and generally speaking, a team’s best corner is much better than their second best corner, their second best corner is much better than a their third best corner, and so on. Depth at receiver not only puts pressure on the defense’s depth, it also makes it easier to scheme your best receiver against substandard defenders, and that leads to better efficiency for everyone https://www.thepackersfanshop.com/Antonio-Morrison-Jersey , including the quarterback. A receiving corps is a bit like a major league pitching staff. If you add an ace to the top of the staff, you don’t replace the previous ace, you replace the 5th starter. The previous ace just gets knocked down a spot, but still pitches almost as much, and may find himself up against non-aces more frequently. Adams is a great weapon, but without any other weapons, his ability to occupy a defense is being wasted. My One WishIf the next coach of the Packers can’t fix Aaron Rodgers, nothing else they do will matter. But one thing that would help and my one offseason wish for the team is a free agent veteran receiver to play opposite Adams. I don’t even think it needs to be a particularly great or expensive receiver, but that spot is secretly the biggest hole on the team and fixing it should be relatively inexpensive. If they can plug that hole and if the rookies can take a step forward as reasonable third and fourth options, the offense can turn things around in a heartbeat. GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — One team is starting a backup at quarterback but still above .500. The other boasts one of the NFL’s best quarterbacks, yet has a losing record.It’s a topsy-turvy matchup when the Miami Dolphins visit the Green Bay Packers on Sunday.Brock Osweiler will make a fifth straight start at quarterback for the Dolphins with Ryan Tannehill nursing a shoulder injury . Two-time NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers seems to be getting healthier after hurting his left knee in the Packers’ season opener against the Chicago Bears.Advantage Packers on offense, at least on paper.Yet for whatever reasons, what should be a prolific unit isn’t clicking consistently for the Packers (3-4-1), especially in the fourth quarters of their last two losses.“Yeah, it’s definitely frustrating, especially when you’ve got the talent we do,” receiver Davante Adams said. “We just need a little bit of flow and consistency, and I think that’s what’s going to get this offense moving in the right direction.”It’s little consolation that the losses have come against two of the league’s best teams, the Rams and Patriots . Miscues on special teams, offense and defense have caught up to the Packers to contribute to the stinging defeats.Green Bay may need a “run the table” type of streak to get into the postseason. That phrase uttered by Rodgers turned into a catchword in 2016 when the Packers won eight straight games to go from 4-6 to the NFC title game.“We’re focused on winning No. 4. That’s all we’re talking about right now,” coach Mike McCarthy said. “We improved as a football team the last two weeks Quinten Rollins Jersey , but you have to play your best football coming down the stretch, and that’s clearly been evident the last two weeks.”The Dolphins (5-4) relied on a resilient defense to beat the struggling New York Jets 13-6. Miami had four interceptions and four sacks while holding the Jets to 2 of 15 on third and fourth downs.It’s a nice cushion with Osweiler making another start. The Dolphins are 2-2 with Osweiler behind center, averaging 22 points a game.“Any time you play a quarterback that’s as special as Aaron is, you want to limit the amount of possessions that he’s able to have,” Osweiler said. “We know offensively this week it’s very important for us to sustain drives, get first downs and try to be in control of that clock.”Other notes and things to watch:RUN THE DRAKE?Kenyan Drake had only three carries for the Dolphins last week, while starter Frank Gore carried 20 times.“We don’t want to be that far apart,” coach Adam Gase said. “There were a few opportunities where we were trying to do certain things with Kenyan that didn’t work out the way we wanted to where we were trying to get him the ball.”Drake is averaging 4.8 yards per carry, but he has had six or fewer in five of Miami’s nine games. For the season he has 73 carries to 104 for the 35-year-old Gore.ROOKIE RECEIVERA groin injury to Geronimo Allison means more opportunities for Marquez Valdes-Scantling. The fifth-round draft pick out of South Florida has shown potential to be a stretch-the-field threat with his speed and 6-foot-4 frame. Valdes-Scantling is averaging a team-best 21.1 yards per catch. He could be a beneficiary of more targets if the Dolphins decide to double Adams, the Packers’ top wideout.SAFETY SHUFFLEReshad Jones will be back in the lineup for the Dolphins after the two-time Pro Bowl safety took himself out of last week’s win over the Jets. Gase said that communication problems between defensive coordinator Matt Burke and players need to be addressed. Still, the defense last week was better after three straight poor games.SAFETY SHUFFLE, PART 2The Packers have done a midseason shuffle at safety. The moves began with the trade of Ha Ha Clinton-Dix to Washington last week.Kentrell Brice was limited at midweek with a knee injury, while Jermaine Whitehead was released this week. Veteran cornerback Tramon Williams was moved to safety against the Rams, but could be needed back at cornerback against Miami because of Kevin King’s hamstring injury. Green Bay picked up safety Ibraheim Campbell off waivers from the New York Jets this week, while second-year player Josh Jones figures to see more snaps after being slowed by injury earlier this year.TURNOVER TIMEThe four picks of Jets rookie Sam Darnold last week gave Miami a league-high 15 interceptions. Now the Dolphins face Rodgers, who has thrown one pick this season.“They’ve made a lot of plays on the ball. They do a nice disguise package,” Rodgers said. “Guys with vision to the football, which means you always have to be smart about your eye discipline.”