NFL gets offensive outburst it desires

The folks at the NFL are gloating. It’s hard to blame them.

What they apparently want, judging by the continual emphasis on making things easier for offenses, is points. And more points.

Big plays, especially in the passing game, though they’ll take lengthy runs, too.

Oh yeah, and more points.

Through four weeks, the 3,030 points scored were the most in NFL history, easily surpassing the 2,986 in 2012. There were 62 more Thursday to begin week 5.

The 344 touchdowns are the most through week 4, a dozen ahead of the 332 in 2015. New England and Indianapolis combined for eight more TDs in the Patriots’ 38-24 victory on Thursday.

There were six touchdown passes in that game, three by Tom Brady and three by Andrew Luck. Add those to the 228 through a quarter of the season (minus Carolina and Washington, which have played three games each), and that is 23 more than the 2013 record.

“I think it’s always tough to say what the reason is for the increased production,” said Rams coach Sean McVay, whose team is a major reason for the rise in scoring. Los Angeles averages 35 points per game, second to Kansas City (36.3).

“Some of the rules, in terms of trying to protect the players that are built toward safety and things like that, do often times favor the offense, especially in some of those passing situations,” McVay added. “When you really look at it over four weeks, that’s a small sample size.” Or not.

McVay is on the right path. Protection of quarterbacks has been carried to such a level that even seemingly textbook hits are penalized. Receivers already have an advantage because of rules that practically allow them to run free beyond 5 yards of the line of scrimmage. The revised catch rule, which was desperately needed, bolsters the offense, too.

Defenders are always on the defense, notably when they are asked to challenge physics as not to land too hard on a quarterback.

“It’s something that we need to get to, but as we’re in transition we’ve gone too far,” Hall of Fame defender Joe Greene said.

There are other factors that don’t have to do with rules, yet overwhelmingly favor the offense.

With the advent of spread offenses in college, receivers are getting an almost immeasurable increase in action. The days of running the ball 70 to 75 percent of the time in college are gone, replaced in some conferences by passing numbers in that vicinity. While the routes those young receivers are taught are limited compared to the pros, they still provide a stronger foundation for them as they reach the NFL.

Quarterbacks, of course, benefit. They might not be well-versed in reading complex defensive schemes, but they are wellrehearsed in putting the ball in the air.

The uptick in offense even has some roots in high school. Gil Brandt, who helped build the Dallas Cowboys into a powerhouse and consults with the NFL in running the draft, cites all of the 7-on-7 drills and camps those teenagers attend.

“The passing game comes natural to them,” Brandt said. “They’re throwing year-round.”

Injury update

• Miami Dolphins defensive end Cameron Wake has been ruled out of Sunday's game at Cincinnati because a knee injury. The game will be the first he has missed since 2016. Andre Branch, listed behind Wake on the depth chart, is questionable with a knee injury that forced him to miss last week's game. If Branch doesn't play, Charles Harris will likely make his third career start.

• Four-time Pro Bowl center Travis Frederick was placed on the nonfootball illness list by the Dallas Cowboys because of a nerve condition that has kept him from playing this season. Frederick was diagnosed during the preseason with Guillain-Barre syndrome. The Cowboys initially kept him on the active roster. Now he will be out at least eight weeks.