Sterling Pro Football Net Point Power Rankings™

  NFL Intriguing Game of the Week Cincinnati Bengals @ Buffalo Bills Bias+ Score 2 Favors Buffalo Bills   The Buffalo Bills have dominated the Sterling Net Point Power Rankings™ since the beginning of the season. They traded 1 st place with the Philadelphia Eagles and the Dallas Cowboys off and on but held 1 st place the majority of the year. The Cincinnati Bengals have held on at about 6 th place in Average Net Points (ANP) at close to half of the Bills production. Where the Bills finished the regular season in 1 st place at +10.6 ANP, the Bengals finished 6 th with +6 ANPs. So how are the Bills only favored by a Bias+ score of 2? This plus the potential effect of the Damar Hamlin incident makes this my ‘Intriguing Game of the Week.’ Let’s start with the favored Bills. The Bills finished the regular season ranked 1 st in Average Net Points at +10.6. That is the result of being ranked 2 nd offensively scoring 28.4 points per game (ppg) and 2 nd in Points...

The Bias+ Reports™  

  Welcome ANP = Average net Points APF = Average Points for APA = Average Points Against ATOD = Average turnover differential Playoff Teams -Green

NFL Intriguing Game of the Week NY Giants 9-7-1 @ Minnesota Vikings 13-4 Bias+ Score 0.2 Favors NY Giants   How is this 9-7-1 team favored over the 13-4 team? This question undergirds the reason that this is the ‘Intriguing’ game. It starts with the Minnesota Vikings who have been recognized for their win/loss record versus their win margin. In late October Minnesota Head Coach Kevin O'Connell said the team has accomplished those feats by "winning on the margins." Although I don’t think he meant point margin, by December the Vikings were 9 and 0 in one-score games. This is compared to the NY Giants who had their fair share of squeakers. However, with a record much closer to .500, the Giant’s win margins are not surprising. Let’s dig into the numbers and see how this shakes out. The Minnesota Vikings finished the regular season poised for the Playoffs but still negative in Net Points ranking 15 th with -0.2 Net Points. How you say? It has a lot to do with th...

  NFL Intriguing Game of the Day Detroit Lions (8&8) @ Green Bay Packers (8&8) Bias+ Score 1.2 Favors Detroit Lions Say it aint so. The Detroit Lions are favored over the Green Bay Packers. With the smallest Bias+ Score of the week, these two teams could not have arrived at the same win/loss records from a more different combination of points scored vs points allowed. The Bias+ indicates that in addition to win/loss, these teams are close in term of net points with Detroit ranking 10 th with +1.4 Net Points and the Packers ranking 12 th with +0.2 Net Points. They are even tied in Average Turnover Differential (ATOD) at +0.3. The following numbers will illustrate the intrigue. Let’s start with the underdog Packers. The Green Bay Packers embody the phrase ‘Middle of the Pack.’ They rank 14 th in scoring averaging 22.1 Points per Game (PPG), just ahead of the NY Giants Cleveland, New England and Carolina. Defensively, they rank 17 th allowing 21.9 ppg, ahead o...

   

 

  NFL Intriguing Game of the Day Minnesota Vikings @ Green Bay Packers Bias+ Score 3.3 Favors Minnesota Vikings The team with the smallest win margins in history has to be part of  the “Intriguing Game.” After all it’s historic. The Vikings have won an NFL record 11 one-score games. Add the fact that Green Bay is looking to slip into the playoffs and that this is a Divisional contest and the drama becomes evident. Both teams are rewriting their quarterback stories. Kirk Cousins is  having the season of his dreams. Aaron Rodgers is learning what it’s like to work with inexperienced receivers but he and his receivers are trending up on the learning curve. Let’s look at the numbers. First the underdogs. The Packers are ranked 18 th with -1.4 Net Points to date. Offensively they rank 19 th averaging 20.9 Points per game (PPG). They rank 17 th in passing and 14 th in rushing with 259.9 yards per game (YPG) and 94.5 YPG respectively. Defensively, the Packers ran...