Shepkowski: Forte Among Several Notable NFL Feats In 2010
By Nick Shepkowski--
For just the second time in the history of the Chicago Bears a player has gone over 1,000 yards rushing and 500 yards receiving in the same season as Matt Forte did so yesterday. He joined Walter Payton as the only Bears to do so as "Sweetness" pulled off the feat in 1983.
Not only did Forte join a rare class but several players and teams across the NFL reached unique milestones and accomplished impressive feats in 2010. Here is a look at a few of them:
For the ninth year in a row the Indianapolis Colts finished with 10 or more wins, now the second longest such streak in NFL history as the 49ers did so in 16 straight seasons from 1983-1998. The Colts 9th straight playoff appearance ties the Cowboys (1975-83) for the longest NFL playoff streak of all-time.
In what continues to grow as a passing league, 22 quarterbacks threw for over 3000 yards. Sure it requires a little luck with health but it's the highest number of QB's to do so in NFL history, passing both 2001 and 2009 which saw 19 quarterbacks do so.
The most impressive quarterbacks of those 22 in 2010 was without a doubt Tom Brady. Brady didn't have a career year in terms of yards or touchdowns but his interception percentage was nearly as low as we've ever seen. Just 4 of his 492 pass attempts wound up in opponents hands, a 0.81 percentage. Only Damon Huard (0.41% in 2006) and Joe Ferguson (0.66% in 1976) were better.
Partly due to his lack of picks, Brady has led the Patriots to a scoring output of 30 or more points in 8 straight contests, the third longest streak all time behind only the 1999 Rams (14) and the 2006-07 Patriots (9).
Bill Belichick also gained sole possession of most 14 win seasons as a head coach in NFL history as he passed George Seifert in yesterday's 38-7 New England win vs. Miami.
Perhaps the most tell-all statistic of these in the NFL deals with parity. For the 15th straight season five or more teams will appear in the playoffs who did not in the year previous as the Bears, Falcons, Seahawks, Steelers, and Chiefs all will do so this season; further proof that no other professional sports league can compare to the NFL in terms of parity.
Other notable NFL feats in 2010:
Matt Ryan's 33 regular season wins through his first three seasons as a starting quarterback tie Dan Marino for the most since 1970.
Derrick Mason became only the third player to record 60+ receptions in 11 straight seasons, joining Jerry Rice and Tony Gonzalez.
Rashard Mendenhall became the third Steelers running back to rush for 1,200 yards and 12+ touchdowns in a season (Franco Harris, Willie Parker).
Jamaal Charles joined Jim Brown as the only running backs to ever rush for 1,400 yards and average 6.3 yards per carry.
The San Diego Chargers became the fifth team to lead the NFL in both total offense and total defense but were the first such team that failed to reach the playoffs.
The Oakland Raiders became the first team since the merger to go undefeated and untied in division play and not make the playoffs.
Nick Shepkowski is the associate producer of "The Danny Mac Show" on 670 The Score, weekdays 9a-1p. You can follow him on twitter @Shep670
