Pro-Football Reference has a page on NFL season by season scoring summary (sorry do not know how to embed web pages) which, from my perspective, bears out what mwald said. For all intents I gave up watching football five years ago, read about it but almost never watch. Only partly due to how the game is played; more to do with not willing to spend 6-8 hours every weekend in front of the TV.Bryan wrote:Scoring has changed very little? Including this season, 4 of the 7 highest scoring seasons in NFL history have occurred in the last 4 seasons. I'd say that's a pretty significant change. From 1950-2015, the 9 of the top 10 highest net yards per pass attempt seasons have been 2015, 2014, 2011, 2010, 2013, 2012, etc....the lone exception being the 1962 season. To think that the NFL product hasn't changed in the last few seasons flies in the face of all quantifiable evidence.mwald wrote:Well....despite all the ridiculous numbers, scoring has changed very little. Sure, it's crept up slightly the last couple years, but I think the late 1940s was still higher. And while passer rating has evolved (gotten higher) over the years, YPA hasn't, at least not materially. Strong organizations still win, and weak organizations don't. In that regard, nothing's really changed from a competitive standpoint. The details have changed, but the essence of the product hasn't.
I already made my thoughts known in the "integrity of the game" thread, but to sum up, the NFL has become too sterile for my taste. I find myself watching more football on Saturdays than Sundays now. If I feel the need to watch night football, I usually tune in to some midweek Bowling Green-Toledo MACtion as opposed to watching the terrible production known as Thursday Night NFL Football.
Will float a tentative hypothesis using the 1999 Rams and the 2000 Ravens as templates: the NFL leadership decided in the early 2000's that the NFL would be more popular if the game was somehow shifted to look a little more like the Rams than the Ravens.
One minor reason might be that great defensive teams play with an angry chip on their shoulders which can alienate opposing team's fan base. This was true of the 2000 Ravens. A great defensive team will beat down opposing teams whereas a great offensive team will merely outscore them. Of course, a good hate can generate TV ratings, but, my guess, is that the NFL leadership prefers warm and fuzzy offensive football, wins through the air rather than angry beat downs.