- Joined
- Nov 26, 2009
- Messages
- 9,266
- Reaction score
- 8,757
What would you like the sample size to be?? 16 games? 32 Games? 64 games? Do we judge the 85 Bears by 1984 and 1986?
they are almost 2/3 of the way through the season, at some point you have to use the data you have been given.
You like definitions, here you go.
In statistics, a sample is a subset of a population. Typically, the population is very large, making a census or a complete enumeration of all the values in the population impractical or impossible. The sample represents a subset of manageable size. Samples are collected and statistics are calculated from the samples so that one can make inferences or extrapolations from the sample to the population.
How about a sample size of 16 - the # of AFC teams?
Among the 16 teams in the AFC that started out 11 weeks ago with identical records and salary cap restrictions, the Patriots have scored the most points in the AFC which is the only statistic they use in a game to determine who wins and who loses.
Bill Belichick says there are three statistics he cares about: the score, turnovers, and red zone efficiency (offensive and defensive, so maybe that is four statistics.)
The Patriots have outscored their opponents in 7 of 10 games tying them for 1st in the AFC with three other teams.
The Patriots are #2 in the AFC in turnover difference (+5) behind only the Texans (also 7-3).
The Patriots defense allows a TD 50% of the time its opponent reaches the red zone - #6 in the AFC. The Patriots offense scores a TD 62% of the time it reaches the red zone - #2 in the AFC.
Infer and extrapolate to your heart's content.