Great offensive lines

It's finally the slow month, the only time in the NFL calendar that really represents a down time. All the teams have finished up their OTA's; players and coaches are off for a couple months before training camp starts. There is no news. Brandon Marshall probably can't make anything happen until training camp gets closer, if at all. Terrell Owens is still in his good behavior phase with his new team. And it's probably too much to expect Plaxico to shoot himself again.

The wonderful guys at Pro Football Reference to the rescue. Here's a post from their blog, on ranking the great O-lines in history using a statistical "approximate value" method:

Great offensive lines

A fun list, something to savor. The top 2 or 3 will make you nod your head. Guess what, the '72-73 Dolphins had a pretty good O-line. Go figure, right? I was surprised the 90's-era Cowboys didn't make a better showing, but it turns out Larry Allen came along later than I remembered. The Bill Walsh Niners had better O-lines than you remember. Also, check out their table with values for "pctg of peak value" by age. It graphically illustrates something that's been a core part of my thinking on pro sports, since I first encountered the idea in Bill James' writings.

Great post.

Good luck getting thru the next month. Are you ready for some football?