When it comes to skill position talent, the LA Rams are in a tight spot. I took a look at 2017-18 NFL training camp rosters and counted up all the points each player scored last season. No NFL team returns less scoring than the Rams — just 104 points (not counting kickers).
The graph below shows points scored by NFL team and player age. It was inspired by a piece Andrew Doughty wrote last week, on the age of returning players for NFC North team, which is some seriously fascinating stuff.
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However, when I looked at it, I realized that the 22-year-old kid at the end of the bench who won't make the final roster cut doesn't matter nearly as much as the 32-year-old wide receiver who scored a quarter of his team's points last year (Jordy Nelson). So I weighted it by points scored. Here's what I came up with:
Current NFL Camp Rosters: Points Scored by Team and Age
So what exactly does this chart show? It counts any points scored by players who crosses the goal line. Kicking points don't count, nor do passing touchdowns. Rushing, receiving, returns, and two-point conversions are the only points counted in the graph above, so it roughly shows the age of skill position talent for each team
For example, the chart above tells us that players on the 2017-18 Green Bay training camp roster scored the second most points of any team last season — 340. It also shows that 152 of those points were scored by players age 30 and older (Aaron Rodgers – 33, Jordy Nelson – 32, and Martellus Bennett – 30).
There were four teams that saw every single point from scored by players under the age of 30: the Vikings, Texans, Browns, and Rams. But of the group, only the Vikings scored more than 150 points (they actually scored 268). Even without Teddy Bridgewater, the Vikings are in good position as far as youth on the offensive side of the ball.
Atlanta would be the fifth team on that list, if not for a two-point conversion scored by 32-year-old Matt Ryan. Those two points were the only two of 370 points scored by a player over the age of 29. That's insanely impressive for the number one scoring offense in the NFL.
Maybe the most striking thing about this chart is how far behind the Rams are. They only scored 104 points (besides kickers) last season — fewer than David Johnson (122) and LeGarrette Blount (108) scored by themselves.
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Here's how bad the Rams were: Todd Gurley's 36 points last season were tied for the 55th most of any player in the league. However, his 36 points meant he was responsible for 35.2% of the Rams' total scoring — the third highest percentage of any player in the league. Only David Johnson (122 points, 43.5% of Arizona's scoring) and LeSean McCoy (86 points, 40.9% of Buffalo's scoring) scored higher percentages of their teams' total points last year.
Brutal. We'll see if the Rams can right that ship this season.
