Small is Beautiful

Just saw a report on SportsCenter about weight issues in the NFL (prompted, obviously, by the death of 49ers rookie Thomas Herrion). A fascinating statistic: only two teams in the League field offensive lines that average less than 300 lbs. Those two teams? The Atlanta Falcons and the Denver Broncos. That's significant, of course, because the Falcons lead the league in rushing last season, and the Broncos have been a long-time rushing powerhouse, renowned for its ability to sub in new running backs every year and have them rattle off 1000 yard seasons. You don't accumulate those kind of rushing statistics without a darn good offensive line, which means that the two lightest o-lines in the NFL are also two of the best. Perhaps, agility is superior to sheer bulk.