Week Ten of the NFL season contained seven quarterbacks who passed for 300 yards or more and seven running backs who rushed for 100 yards or more.

The seven quarterbacks who passed for 300 yards or more and the WON/LOSS result of their teams in Week Ten is as follows:

Ryan, Atlanta  351  LOSS
Brady, New England  329  WIN
Stafford, Detroit  329  LOSS
Brees, New Orleans  322  WIN
Skelton, Arizona  315  WIN
Manning, NYGiants  311 LOSS
Sanchez, NYJets  306  LOSS

That works out to a WON/LOSS record of 3 WINS/4 LOSS, or a 43% winning percentage.

The seven running backs who rushed for 100 yards or more and the WON/LOSS result of their teams in Week Ten is as follows:

Bush, Oakland  157  WIN
Murray, Dallas  135  WIN
Johnson, Tennessee  130  WIN
Jackson, St. Louis  128  WIN
Jackson, Buffalo  114  LOSS
Jones-Drew, Jacksonville  114  WIN
Lynch, Seattle  109  WIN

That works out to a WON/LOSS record of 6 WINS/1 LOSS, or an 86% winning percentage.
Year-to-date, this is how these statistics break down:

500 YARD PASSERS
1 WIN/0 LOSSES  100% Winning Percentage

400 YARD PASSERS
3 WINS/7 LOSSES 30% Winning Percentage

300 YARD PASSERS
42 WINS/37 LOSSES  53% Winning Percentage

200 YARD RUSHERS
2 WINS/0 LOSSES  100% winning percentage
100 YARD RUSHERS
59 WINS/16 LOSSES  79% Winning Percentage

TWO 100 YARD RUSHERS ON THE SAME TEAM
3 WIN/0 LOSSES  100% Winning Percentage

BOTH A 300 YARD PASSER AND 100 YARD RUSHERS
3 WIN/1 LOSS  75% Winning Percentage

Currently for the season, teams who have had quarterbacks pass for 300 yards or more would have a won/loss record total in a 16-game season of 8 WINS/8 LOSSES.

Currently for the season, teams who have had player rush for 100 yards or more would have a WON/LOSS record total in a 16-game season of 13 WINS/3 LOSSES.
The bottom line in the NFL is winning games.To this point in the season, it appears the best chance to win in the NFL is to have a player rush for 100 yards or more during each game.

Week Nine of the 2011 NFL Season had five quarterbacks who passed for 300 yard or more and nine players who rushed for 100 yards or more.

The quarterbacks who passed for 300 yards or more in Week Nine are as follows:

Rivers, San Diego  385  LOSS
Brady, New England  342  LOSS
Palmer, Oakland  332  LOSS
Rothlisberger, Pittsburgh  330  LOSS
Flacco, Baltimore  300  WIN

The teams whose quarterbacks who passed for 300 yards or more had a combined ONE/LOSS record of 1 WIN/4 LOSSES, or a winning percentage of 20%

The players who rushed for 100 yards or more in Week Nine are as follows:

McGahee, Denver  163  WIN
Murray, Dallas  139  WIN
Lynch, Seattle  135  LOSS
Forte, Chicago  133  WIN
Jackson, St. Louis  130  LOSS
Foster, Houston  124  WIN
Tebow, Denver 118  WIN
Tate, Houston  115  WIN
Gore, San Francisco  107  WIN

The teams who had players who rushed for 100 yards or more had a WON/LOSS record of
7 WINS/2 LOSSES, or a winning percentage of 78%.

In Week Nine, both Houston (Foster/Tate) and Denver (McGahee/Tebow) had two players rush for 100 yards or more. Both of these teams won their games in Week Nine.

Year-to-date, this is how these statistics break down:

500 YARD PASSERS
1 WIN/0 LOSSES  100% Winning Percentage

400 YARD PASSERS
3 WINS/7 LOSSES 30% Winning Percentage

300 YARD PASSERS
39 WINS/33 LOSSES  54% Winning Percentage

200 YARD RUSHERS
2 WINS/0 LOSSES  100% winning percentage

100 YARD RUSHERS
53 WINS/15 LOSSES  78% Winning Percentage

TWO 100 YARD RUSHERS ON THE SAME TEAM
3 WIN/0 LOSSES  100% Winning Percentage

BOTH A 300 YARD PASSER AND 100 YARD RUSHERS
3 WIN/1 LOSS  75% Winning Percentage

Currently for the season, teams who have had quarterbacks pass for 300 yards or more would have a won/loss record total in a 16-game season of 9 WINS/7 LOSSES.

Currently for the season, teams who have had player rush for 100 yards or more would have a WON/LOSS record total in a 16-game season of 12 WINS/4 LOSSES.

We are at the halfway point of the 2011 NFL Season.
Once again, the statistics bear it out.
If a team wants to win in the NFL, a team must be able to run the ball effectively.

Week Eight of the 2011 NFL season brought five quarterbacks who passed for 300 yards or more and six running backs who rushed for 100 yards or more.

The quarterbacks who passed for 300 yards or more in Weed Eight are as follows:

Rivers, San Diego  369  LOSS
Rothisberger, Pittsburgh  365  WIN
Manning, NYGiants  349  WIN
Flacco, Baltimore 336  WIN
Jackson, Seatlle  323  WIN

The WON/LOSS record of the teams of these quarterbacks in Week Eight was 4 WINS/1 LOSS, for a winning percentage of 80%

Teams whose quarterbacks who passed for 300 yards or more have shown a marked improvement in WINS/LOSSES over the past two weeks. In Week Seven, quarterbacks who passed for 300 yards or more had a record of 3 WINS/0 LOSSES last week. Over the past two weeks, the WIN/LOSS record for teams with these quarterbacks have a record of 7 WINS/1 LOSS.

The running backs who rushed for 100 yards or more in Week Eight are as follows:

McCoy, Philadelphia  185  WIN
Jackson, St. Louis  159  WIN
Gore, San Francisco  134  WIN
Jackson, Buffalo  120  WIN
Foster, Houston  112  WIN
Bush, Miami  103  LOSS

The WON/LOSS record of the teams of these running backs in Week Eight was 5 WINS/1 LOSS, for a winning percentage of 83%.

Teams whose running backs who rushed for 100 yards or more in Week Seven had a WON/LOSS record of 6 WINS/1 LOSS. Over the past two weeks, the WON/LOSS record for teams with these running backs have a record of 11 WINS/1 LOSS.
Year-to-date, this is how these statistics bear out:

500 YARD PASSERS
1 WIN/0 LOSSES  100% Winning Percentage

400 YARD PASSERS
3 WINS/7 LOSSES 30% Winning Percentage

300 YARD PASSERS
38 WINS/29 LOSSES  57% Winning Percentage

100 YARD RUSHERS
46 WINS/13 LOSSES  78% Winning Percentage

200 YARD RUSHERS
2 WINS/0 LOSSES  100% winning percentage

TWO 100 YARD RUSHERS ON THE SAME TEAM
1 WIN/0 LOSSES  100% Winning Percentage

BOTH A 300 YARD PASSER AND 100 YARD RUSHERS
3 WIN/1 LOSS  75% Winning Percentage

Currently, quarterbacks who pass for 300 yards or more will ultimately lead their teams to a 9 WIN/7 LOSS record by the end of the season.

Currently, running backs who rush for 100 yards or more will ultimately lead their teams to a 12 WIN/4 LOSS record by the end of the season.

Even though Week Eight of the NFL season showed another vast improvement for teams whose quarterbacks passed for 300 yards or more, it is still clear that to succeed in the NFL and win games, running the ball well will go a long way in producing wins for your team.

(Statistics from NFL.com)

Week Seven of the NFL season saw a remarkably low number of quarterbacks pass for 300 yards or more: 3.

Week Seven of the NFL season had a usual number of running backs rush the ball for 100 yards or more: 8.

To this point in the season, statistics have borne out that quarterbacks who pass the ball for 300 yards or more lead their teams to victory at a 50% rate; running backs who run the football for 100 yards or more lead their teams to victory nearly 75% of the time. That is a season won-loss record difference of 8 WINS/8 LOSSES or 12 WINS/4 LOSSES.

The breakdown of the quarterbacks who passed for 300 yards or more in Week Seven of the NFL Season is as follows:

Rothlisberger, Pittsburgh  361  WIN
Rodgers, Green Bay  335  WIN
Brees, New Orleans  325  WIN

That adds up to a 3 WIN/0 LOSS record, or a 100% winning percentage - easily the best result for 300-yard-passing quarterbacks this season. However, there were only three quarterbacks who passed for over 300 yards for the week - easily the fewest this season.

Even if we take Aaron Rodgers out of these stats (because he is Aaron Rodgers), the won-loss record for these quarterback is 2 WINS/0 LOSSES, and still a 100% winning percentage.

The breakdown of running backs who rushed for 100 yards or more in Week Seven of the NFL Season is as follows:

Murray, Dallas  253  WIN
Peterson, Minnesota  175  LOSS
Forte, Chicago  145  WIN
Turner, Atlanta  122  WIN
Foster, Houston  115  WIN
Greene, NYJets  112  WIN
Jones-Drew  105  WIN
Tate, Houston  104  WIN

The Houston Texans has two running backs rush for 100 yards or more (Foster/Tate). For the sake of this study, we will only count Houston's win only once. 

These statistics add up to a 6 WIN/1 LOSS record, or a 86% winning percentage.

Year-to-date, this is how these statistics bear out:

500 YARD PASSERS
1 WIN/0 LOSSES  100% Winning Percentage

400 YARD PASSERS
3 WINS/7 LOSSES 30% Winning Percentage

300 YARD PASSERS
31 WINS/28 LOSSES  53% Winning Percentage

100 YARD RUSHERS
40 WINS/12 LOSSES  77% Winning Percentage

200 YARD RUSHERS
2 WINS/0 LOSSES  100% winning percentage

TWO 100 YARD RUSHERS ON THE SAME TEAM
1 WIN/0 LOSSES  100% Winning Percentage

BOTH A 300 YARD PASSER AND 100 YARD RUSHERS
3 WIN/1 LOSS  75% Winning Percentage


Week Seven of the NFL Season seems to have brought us more of the same: Pass the ball for 300 yards or more and that team will win the game about half the time. Run the ball for 100 yards or more and three out of four times that team will win. It's not hard to see, or explain.
(Statistics from NFL.com)

Week Six of the 2011 NFL Season had six quarterbacks pass for 300 yards or more.
Week Six of the 2011 NFL Season had eight running backs rush for 100 yards or more.

We have seen in previous weeks that passing the ball for 300 or even 400 yards does not at all guarantee wins. We have seen in previous weeks how successfully running the ball in the NFL directly translates into wins. Will Week Six of the NFL Season prove out the same results?

Quarterbacks who passed for 300 yards or more in Week Six, break down like this:

Brees, New Orleans  383  LOSS
Bradford, St. Louis  328  LOSS
Romo, Dallas  317  LOSS
Rodgers, Green Bay  316  WIN
Flacco, Baltimore  305  WIN
Freeman, Tampa Bay  302  WIN

The WIN/LOSS record for the teams of theses quarterbacks is 3 WINS/3 LOSSES, for a winning percentage of 50%. Not very impressive.

Take out Aaron Rodgers from this equation (because he is Aaron Rodgers), and the WIN/LOSS results for these quarterbacks becomes 2 WINS/3 LOSSES.

Running backs who rushed for 100 yards or more in Week Six break down like this:

Mendenhall, Pittsburgh  146 WIN
Gore, San Francisco  141  WIN
Turner, Atlanta  139  WIN
McCoy, Philadelphia  126  WIN
Jackson, Buffalo  121  LOSS
Graham, Tampa Bay  109 WIN
Bradshaw, NYGiants  104  WIN
Rice, Baltimore  101  WIN

The WIN/LOSS record for the teams of these running backs is 7 WINS/1 LOSS, for a winning percentage of 88%. That is downright dominating.


Tampa Bay had a 300 yard passer and a 100 yard rusher in Week Six (Freeman/Graham).
Baltimore also had a 300 yard passer and a 100 yard rusher in Week Six (Flacco/Rice).

Year-to-date, here are these statistics broken out:

500 YARD PASSERS
1 WIN/0 LOSSES  100% Winning Percentage

400 YARD PASSERS
3 WINS/7 LOSSES 30% Winning Percentage

300 YARD PASSERS
28 WINS/28 LOSSES  50% Winning Percentage

100 YARD RUSHERS
34 WINS/11 LOSSES  74% Winning Percentage

BOTH A 300 YARD PASSER AND 100 YARD RUSHERS
3 WIN/1 LOSS  75% Winning Percentage

Once again, the statistics are proving out what we have always known:
To be successful in football (and the NFL) a team needs to be able to run the ball consistently well.

(Statistics from NFL.com)

Week Five of the NFL Season included six quarterbacks who passed for 300 yards or more. Two quarterbacks passed for 400 yards or more.
Eleven running backs rushed for 100 yards or more.

In our continuing study of these statistical and yardage outputs, how will these numbers further translate into WINS or LOSSES for the teams of these players.

The quarterbacks who passed for over 400 yards in Week Five are as follows:

Manning, NYGiants  420  LOSS
Schaub, Houston  416  LOSS

That works out to a WIN/LOSS record of 0 WINS/2 LOSSES, or a winning percentage of 0%.

The quarterbacks who passed for over 300 yards in Week Five are as follows:

Manning, NYGiants  420  LOSS
Schaub, Houston  416  LOSS
Rodgers, Green Bay  396  WIN
Brees, New Orleans  359  WIN
Brady, New England  321  WIN
Vick, Philadelphia  315  LOSS

That works out to a WIN/LOSS record of 3 WINS/3 LOSSES, or a winning percentage of 50%.

Take out Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady (because they are Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady), the WON/LOSS record then becomes 1 WIN/3 LOSSES. That equals a winning percentage of 25%.

The running backs who rushed for 100 yards or more in Week Five are as follows:

Best, Dteroit  163  WIN
Green-Ellis, New England  136  WIN
Gore, San Francisco  125  WIN
Matthews, San Diego  125  WIN
McGahee, Denver  125  LOSS
Peterson, Minnesota  122  WIN
Battle, Kansas City  119  WIN
Forte, Chicago  116  LOSS
Williams, Carolina  115  LOSS
Jackson, Buffalo  111 WIN
Dwyer, Pittsburgh  107  WIN

That works out to a WIN/LOSS record of 8 WINS/3 LOSSES, or a winning percentage of 73%

New England had a 300 yard passer (Brady) and a 100 yard rusher (Green-Ellis) in Week Five.

Year-to-date, here is how these results break down:

500 YARD PASSERS
1 WIN/0 LOSSES  100% Winning Percentage

400 YARD PASSERS
3 WINS/7 LOSSES  30% Winning Percentage

300 YARD PASSERS
25 WINS/25 LOSSES  50% Winning Percentage

100 YARD RUSHERS
27 WINS/10 LOSSES  73% Winning Percentage

BOTH A 300 YARD PASSER AND 100 YARD RUSHERS
1 WIN/1 LOSS  50% Winning Percentage

The data is still bearing itself out.
It's only Week Five.

It looks like the way to win in the NFL is to run the football successfully.

Week Four of the 2011 NFL Season had two quarterbacks pass for over 400 yards, eight quarterbacks pass for over 300 yards and nine running backs rush for over 100 yards.

The breakdown of the quarterbacks who passed for over 400 yards in Week Four is as follows:

Vick, Philadelphia  416  LOSS  1-3
Rodgers, Green Bay  408  WIN  4-0

The WON/LOSS record of teams whose quarterback passed for over 400 yards in Week Four is 1 WIN/1 LOSS, equalling a winning percentage of 50%. 

If we take out Aaron Rodgers (because he is Aaron Rodgers - and he also ran for 2 touchdowns this week), the WON/LOSS record for teams whose quarterback passed for 400 yards or more is 0 WIN/1 LOSS, or winning percentage of 0%.

The complete breakdown of quarterbacks who passed for 300 yards or more in Week Three is as follows:

Vick, Philadelphia  416  LOSS  1-3
Rodgers, Green Bay  408  WIN  4-0
Newton, Carolina  374  LOSS  1-3
Brees, New Orleans  351  WIN  3-1
McCoy, Cleveland  350  LOSS  2-2
Campbell, Oakland  344  LOSS  2-2
Romo, Dallas  331  LOSS  2-2
Manning, NY Giants  321  WIN  3-1
Jackson, Seattle  319  LOSS  1-3
Rivers, San Diego  307  WIN  3-1

The combined WON/LOSS record for teams whose quarterback passed for 300 yards or more in Week Four is 4 WINS/6 LOSSES, or a winning percentage of 40%. That is not impressive at all.

If we take out Aaron Rodgers (because he is Aaron Rodgers - and he also ran for 2 touchdowns this week), the WON/LOSS record for teams whose quarterback passed for 300 yards or more is  3 WINS/6 LOSSES, or a winning percentage of 33%.

The breakdown of running backs who rushed for 100 yards or more in Week Four is as follows:

Forte, Chicago  205  WIN  2-2
Foster, Houston  155  WIN  3-1
Wells, Arizona  138  LOSS  1-3
Tourain, Washington  135  WIN  3-1
Blount, Tampa Bay  127  WIN  3-1
Gore, San Francisco  127  WIN  3-1
Benson, Cincinnati  104  WIN  2-2
McGahee, Denver  103  LOSS  1-3
Johnson, Tennessee  101  WIN  3-1

The combined WON/LOSS record for teams whose running back rushed for 100 yards or more in Week Four is 7 WINS/2 LOSSES, for a winning percentage of 78%. That is very impressive.

For the year, the numbers break down as follows:

Teams whose quarterbacks passed for 500 yards or more in a game have a season record of
1 WIN/0 LOSSES, or a winning percentage of 100%.

Teams whose quarterbacks passed for 400 yards or more in a game have a season record of
3 WINS/5 LOSSES, or a winning percentage of 38%.

Teams whose quarterbacks passed for 300 yards or more in a game have a season record of 
22 WINS/22 LOSSES, or a winning percentage of 50%.

Teams whose running back rushed for 100 yards or more in a game have a season record of
19 WINS/7 LOSSES, or a winning percentage of 73%.

The 2011 NFL season is a quarter over and the numbers are clear:
If you want to win in the NFL, run the ball for 100 yards or more in a game and you will win 3 out of every 4 games. That works out to a 12-4 season record and probably home field advantage for the entire playoffs and at the very least, a first round Bye.

Week Three in the NFL had 11 quarterbacks pass for 300 yards or more and only four running backs rush for 100 yards or more.

The breakdown of the quarterbacks who passed for 300 yards or more is like this:

Flacco, Baltimore   389  WIN  2-1
Brady, New England  387  LOSS  2-1
Stafford, Detroit  378  WIN  3-0
Shaub, Texas  373  LOSS  1-2
Brees, New Orleans  370  WIN  2-1
Fitzpatrick, Buffalo  369  WIN  3-0
Sanchez, NY Jets, 369  LOSS  1-2
Rothlisberger, Pittsburgh  364  WIN  2-1
Ryan, Atlanta  330  LOSS  1-2
Hasselbeck, Tennessee  311  WIN  2-1
Cutler, Chicago  302  LOSS

The total WIN/LOSS record for teams with a quarterback who passed for 300 yards or more in Week #3 is 6 WINS/5 LOSSES, and a winning percentage of 55%. Still not very impressive.

Take the Tom Brady factor (because he is Tom Brady) and the results become 
6 WINS/4 LOSSES, and a winning percentage of 60%. That is a better result. We should mention that Brady threw 4 touchdowns along with his 387 yards - and he also threw 4 interceptions in Week #3.

The breakdown of the running backs who ran for 100 yards or more is like this:

McFadden, Oakland  171  WIN  2-1
McCoy, Philadelphia  128  LOSS  1-2
Jones-Drew, Jacksonville  122  LOSS  1-2
Jones, Dallas  115  WIN  2-1

The total WIN/LOSS record for teams with a running back who ran for 100 yards or more in Week #3 is 2 WINS/2 LOSSES, and a winning percentage of 50%. That is not impressive.

Week #3 is the first week of the season that teams with a running back who rushed for 100 yards or more did not have a winning percentage for the week above 50%.

To date, the season results in these categories are as follows:

300 YARD PASSERS
18 WNS   16 LOSSES
(53% winning percentage)

100 YARD RUSHERS
12 WINS   5 LOSSES
(71% winning percentage)

Maybe the NFL is setting down going into the fourth week of the season.
Maybe passing yards and rushing yards will even out.

I don't think so - 
I still think to win in the NFL a team needs to be able to run the ball.

A team also needs to play defense...
If a team can stop the opposition from scoring they will need to pass the ball less because they will not need to catch up to the opponent; and they will probably run the ball more.

Oh no, I might have to begin tracking the Points Allowed statistic as well...
(Statistics from NFL.com)

One of the things I really am getting tired of in the media these days, and especially the sports media, is the everyday over-hyping over nearly everything that happens. At the end of Week #1 of the NFL season after 14 quarterbacks passed for 300 yards including 4 who passed for over 400 yards, the experts and analysts all talked about how the NFL was now moving (if not already in) an pass-first league with offensive numbers moving toward Arena Football realms.

I think those experts and analysts are just blowhards.
They puff up everything that perspective is lost in minutes and everything from players, to games, to coaches, to champions is skewed so badly you'd think every week of a sports season in Armageddon. 

This is the reason I entitled my take on the sports world as, LoudMouth Sports.
Everyone else is a loudmouth, I just want to fit right in.Hopefully, I will bring a bit of common sense and factual discussion to the conversation.

Onward with my take:

Week #2 of the 2011 NFL season showed a bit of a slow-down in quarterbacks passing for 300 yards. Week #1 had 14 quarterbacks throwing those numbers, while Week #2 only had 9 quarterbacks throwing for those yards. That works out to a 36% decrease in 300 yard passers for the week.

Within those 300 yard-plus passers, two of them threw for over 400 yards (Tom Brady and Cam Newton). Week #1 had 4 quarterbacks passing for 400 yards. That's a 50% decrease in 400 yard passers for the week,

Teams whose quarterbacks passed for 400 yards in Week #2 lead their teams to 1 win and 1 loss. For the season, teams with quarterbacks who passed for 400 yards have a won-loss record of 3-2 (60% winning percentage).

These are the quarterbacks who passed for 300 yards or more in Week #2:

Newton, Carolina: 432 LOSS  Team Record:  0-2
Brady, New England:  423 WIN  Team Record:  2-0
Rivers, San Diego:  378 LOSS  Team Record:  1-1
Hasselbeck, Tennessee: 358 WIN  Team Record: 1-1
Romo, Dallas:  345 WIN  Team Record:  1-1
Dalton, Cincinnati:  332 LOSS  Team Record: 1-1
Bradford, St. Louis:  331 LOSS  Team Record:  0-2
Campbell, Oakland:  323 LOSS  Team Record:  1-1
Rodgers, Green Bay:  308 WIN  Team Record: 2-0

The combined results of these teams works out to a 4 WIN/5LOSS record for the week.
Results for the year is now a 12 WINS/11 LOSSES season record.
That adds up to a 52% winning percentage.
Not very impressive.

Subtract Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady from these results (well, because they are Aaron Rodgers and Tom Brady), and we get a Week #2 result of 2 WIN/5 LOSS record.

If we then take Brady and Rodgers out of the results for Week #1, that would give the 300 yard passers for Week #1 a 6 WIN/6LOSS record. The season record for 300 yard passers would then be 8 WINS/11 LOSSES, or sad 42% winning percentage.

To stay on task, we will leave our numbers true for the 300 yard passers, at their                    12 WIN/11LOSS record, complete with 52% winning percentage.


In Week #2 of the NFL season there were 6 rushers who gained at least 100 yards. Week #1 had 7 rushers who accomplished the same feat. That is a 15% decrease in 100 yard rushers in Week #2.

These are the running backs who rushed for 100 yards or more in Week #2:

Peterson, Minnesota:  120 LOSS  Team Record:  0-2
Jackson, Buffalo:  117 WIN  Team Record:  2-0
Turner, Atlanta:  114 WIN  Team Record:  1-1
Thomas, Miami:  107 LOSS  Team Record:  0-2
Tate, Houston:  103 WIN  Team Record:  2-0
MaGahee, Denver:  101 WIN  Team Record: 1-1

The results of these teams works out to a 4 WIN/2 LOSS record for the week.
Results for the year is now a 10 WINS/3 LOSSES season record.
That adds up to a 77% winning percentage.
That is impressive.

Jackson, Tate and Turner all ran for 100 yards in Week #1.
Jackson's Bills are 2-0. Tate's Texans are 2-0. Turner's Falcons are 1-1.
That works out to a 5 WIN/1 LOSS record for repeat/consecutive 100 yard rushers.
That is a 83% winning percentage.
Impressive.

Week #2 had no team with both a 300 yard passers and 100 yard rushers,
Week #1 had one team (Atlanta) with a 300 yard passers and 100 yard rusher.

To calm down the hype of the pass-happy NFL (where did that go after Week #2 all you, experts?), here are the season total results for the 300 yard passers and 100 yard rushers after Week #2:

300 YARD PASSERS
12 WINS   11 LOSSES   52% Winning Percentage

100 YARD RUSHERS
10 WINS   3 LOSSES   77% Winning Percentage

Once again, statistics don't lie.
Wins and losses don't lie, either.
(Statistics from NFL.com)

I watched most of the opening game of the NFL Season that pitted the New Orleans Saints against the defending Super Bowl Champion Green Bay Packers. 

I saw Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers throw the ball very well and move the Packers out to a commanding 21-7 lead. I also saw New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees throw the ball well and bring his team back to nearly tie or win a game the Packers seemingly had in the bag.

Rodgers finished the game with 312 yards passing.
Brees finished the game with 419 yards passing.

I did not watch any of the Week 1 game that pitted the New England Patriots against the Miami Dolphins. We all know by now that New England quarterback Tom Brady put on a show passing the football.  Some of us are aware that Miami quarterback Chad Henne also racked up some impressive yardage in the air.

Brady finished the game with 517 yards passing.
Henne finished the game with 416 yards passing.

In those two games alone, the team that passed for 300 yards had a won-loss record of 2-2.
In those two games alone, the team that passed for 400 yards had a won-loss record of 2-1.
Of course, the tea that passed for 500 yards had a won-loss record of 1-0, but how often does that happen?

In Week 1 of the 2011 Season, fourteen (14) quarterbacks passed for 300 yards or more.
Not all of those quarterbacks led their teams to wins, as we have seen:

Brady, New England: 517   WIN
Newton, Carolina: 422   LOSS
Brees, New Orleans: 419   LOSS
Henne, Miami: 416   LOSS
Romo, Dallas: 342   LOSS 
Rivers, San Diego: 335   WIN
Sanchez, NY Jets: 335   WIN
Ryan, Atlanta: 319   LOSS
Cutler, Chicago: 312   WIN
Rodgers, Green Bay: 312   WIN
Kolb, Arizona: 309   WIN
Grossman, Washington: 305   WIN
Stafford, Detroit: 305   WIN
Orton, Denver: 304   LOSS

The total won-loss record of teams whose quarterback passed for 300 yards or more in Week 1 was a cumulative 8 WINS and 6 LOSSES.
That's a 57% winning percentage.
Not very impressive.

Not much was reported about running backs who rushed for 100 yards or more in Week 1. Certainly a mere 100 yards or so running the ball was not as flashy and exciting as a 500 yard passing game or a couple of 400 yard efforts along with a group of 300 yard passing games.

In Week 1 of the 2011 NFL Season, seven (7) running backs rushed the ball for 100 yards or more. Not all of those running backs led their teams to victories:

McFadden, Oakland: 150   WIN
McCoy, Philadelphia: 122   WIN
Benson, Cincinnati: 121   WIN
Tate, Houston: 116   WIN
Jackson, Buffalo: 112   WIN
Rice, Baltimore: 107   WIN
Turner, Atlanta: 100   LOSS
 
The total won-loss record of teams whose running back rushed for 100 yards on more in Week 1 was a cumulative 6 WINS and 1 LOSS.
That's an 86% winning percentage.
That is very impressive.

A closer look at the two lists reveals that the only running back who rushed for 100 yards on a team that lost was Michael Turner of the Atlanta Falcons. The quarterback of the Falcons is Matt Ryan. Ryan passed for 319 yards in the same game Turner rushed for 100 yards. The Falcons lost.

In fact, no other running back who rushed for 100 yards or more in Week 1 had a quarterback on his team that passed for 300 yards or more in the same game. 

Every other running back, except Turner, who ran for 100 yards led his team to a win.

I think it can be said, at least after one week, the key to winning games in the National Football League lies in being able to successfully run the football.
I have always thought that.
Coaches, analysts and fans have always said that.
After one week of the 2011 NFL season it seems to be the same this year as well.

Statistics don't lie.
Either do Wins and Losses.
(Statistics from NFL.com)