In today's NFL, there are countless metrics and advanced analytics to help measure how well a particular team is doing with respect to their opponents. Recently, EPA (Expected Points Added) has been gaining popularity with football fans, while DVOA (Defense-adjusted Value Over Average) is a good metric to determine how well teams are performing.
However, one of the most telling statistics is still average points per game. Just like in any sport, the object of the game is always to outscore your opponent. Obviously, some teams do this much better than others.
Entering Week 7, this metric has been particularly interesting as the discrepancy between the top teams in the league and the bottom-dwellers is as significant as we have ever seen. Here are NFL standings ordered by points per game entering Week 7 of the 2023 season, per ESPN stats.
NFL standings ordered by points per game entering Week 7
1. Miami 37.2
2. San Francisco 30.7
3. Buffalo 28.8
4. Detroit 28.0
5. Philadelphia 25.8
6. Dallas 25.7
7. LA Chargers 25.4
8. Seattle 24.8 24.7
9. Kansas City 24.5
10. Jacksonville 23.7
11. Indianapolis 23.3
12. LA Rams 23.0
13. Green Bay 22.6
14. Houston 22.5
15. Baltimore 22.2
15. Washington 22.2
17. Denver 21.5
17. Minnesota 21.5
19. Chicago 21.3
20. Arizona 19.5
21. Cleveland 19.0
22. NY Jets 18.8
23. Carolina 18.7
24. New Orleans 18.2
25. Tampa Bay 18.0
26. Tennessee 17.3
27. Cincinnati 16.7
27. Las Vegas 16.7
29. Atlanta 16.5
30. Pittsburgh 15.8
31. New England 12.0
32. NY Giants 11.8
At the top of the list in a tier of their own is the Miami Dolphins. Mike McDaniel's offense has been on an unreal pace -- averaging a whopping 37.2 points per contest. In a few of their games this season, their lead has been so big that they have rested their starters in the fourth quarter. This has helped them to a 5-1 record entering Week 6. Their only loss came on the road against the Buffalo Bills.
In the next tier for the most points per game are teams like the 49ers, Bills, and Lions -- each scoring between 28 to 31 points per contest. Unsurprisingly, these teams have combined for a record of 14-4 early in the season.
The bottom of the rankings looks quite different. The New York Giants and New England Patriots each sit at 12.0 PPG or lower. Remarkably, this is three times fewer points than what Miami has been averaging this year.
The Steelers are just above the Giants and Patriots and are 30th in the NFL at just 15.8 points per contest. However, if you take away two defensive touchdowns and a safety on special teams, Pittsburgh has managed just 12.4 offensive points per game.
Surprisingly, the Steelers have managed to squeak out a 3-2 record prior to their Week 6 bye and they are 2-0 against divisional opponents in the AFC North. However, they can't expect this type of success to continue if they aren't going to start putting up more points.
On paper, the Steelers have been one of the worst offenses in the league so far. In addition to being 30th in points per game, Pittsburgh is also 30th in yards per game -- managing just 268.2 per contest.
Points per game is typically a very good indicator of which teams are performing well and which teams are not. The Cincinnati Bengals are the biggest surprise team at just 16.7 points per game on the season.
There are still some playoff hopefuls like the Steelers, Bengals, and Saints who are near the bottom of the league in this department. They will need to turn things around fast if they want to have sustained success throughout the season.