One other team that was a bit of a surprise was Jacksonville. The Jaguars are normally considered a run-first team, but last year it didn’t play out that way for them. Maybe this is a trend for Jacksonville going forward, using the passing game a little more than past seasons. Something to keep in mind when looking at players like D.J. Chark and Gardner Minshew.

The rushing leader from last year should not be a surprise. The Ravens led all of football in rush attempts and by a wide margin, mainly because their quarterback had maybe the greatest rushing season ever for a quarterback. Baltimore ran the ball 58 percent of the team, which was seven percent more than any other team. San Francisco, Minnesota and Tennessee were the only other teams to run the ball at least 50 percent of the timw. Again, the star backs on these teams should garner heavy consideration come draft day because they should get plenty of chances again this season.

Two surprise teams in the top 10 are the Raiders and Texans. You normally think of the Texans as a team that throws all the time, but they were ninth overall despite having Carlos Hyde as their starting running back. David Johnson might be setup for a nice rebound season in this offense. And the Raiders are another team that ran often last year, making Josh Jacobs an intriguing candidate for a breakout year. Las Vegas could make Jacobs the centerpiece of their offense for years to come.

The three year passing trends are fairly similar to last year’s numbers. The Giants and Falcons top the list, throwing the ball 62 percent of the time. Atlanta seems a pretty good bet to air it out based on the last few years, making Matt Ryan and Julio Jones dependable for fantasy teams. The Giants are a little more uncertain. New York has not been good in recent years, leading the team to throw a little more since they were playing from behind. That might not be the case this year if the team is in more games, But either way, it is intriguing to see how often the Giants have thrown in recent years. Daniel Jones could have a breakout second season if he gets a lot of chances again this year.

The Packers are third but that trend shifted a little last year, seeing them finish middle of the pack (58 percent passing plays). Green Bay is leaning a little more on the run these days with a new coaching staff in place. This is likely the case again this coming year.

The Bucs have thrown the ball 61 percent of the time the last three seasons. This bodes well for Tom Brady, playing in a pass-first offense. Brady should get plenty of chances to throw in this offense, which has tons of weapons in the passing game. 

One other team of note on the three-year pass list is the Lions. The team didn’t throw the ball quite as much last year when Matthew Stafford got hurt, but when he is in the lineup, this team throws the ball a lot. Detroit calls passing plays 59 percent of the time the last three seasons. Stafford is the player that leads the way for this offense and passing attack.

The Ravens also top the list for rush plays over the past three seasons (51 percent). Tennessee, Buffalo and Seattle are tied for second at 49 percent. All four teams on the three-year list also made last year’s top 10. So it is a pretty good trend with these teams. Much of the same could happen this coming year. So guys like Derrick Henry, Chris Carson and even Devin Singletary could be in for big workloads in 2020.

The Texans are also a team on both lists, so maybe perceptions can be a little deceiving when it comes to this offense. Houston likes to run the ball, so again, David Johnson is an intriguing player for the coming year. He could surprise in this offense if healthy and back on his game.

The Colts are another team that has been a little run heavy compared to other teams. Indy was fifth in run plays called last year and are seventh the last three seasons. The Colts have one of the best offensive lines in football, so leaning on the run makes sense. A heavy rotation of rookie Johnathan Taylor and Marlon Mack could be in store for the Colts this coming year. Taylor is a really intriguing rookie in this offense.

Overall, you can’t expect a complete repeat of all these numbers for this coming year, but it is something to keep in mind come draft day. There are definitely trends that should be considered when making rankings and selections come draft day. Learn from the past to get ready for the future.