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Although the three teams with the highest average-per-carry -- Atlanta (5.1), Denver (5.0) and Seattle (5.0) -- could all be playoff teams, how do you explain Carolina? The Panthers are 8-3, but their average-per-carry is a dreadful 3.0, the worst figure in the league. New England and Dallas are both sitting in first place, but their numbers (3.6 and 3.4, respectively) are woeful.
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Gee, Jim, I think it has to do with:
Carolina has a good defense, great receiver, and an easy schedule.
New England plays in a crappy division.
Dallas has one of the best defenses in the league, and a pretty damned good passing offense.
Does this mean the YPC stat sucks? There are problems with the YPC stat - some players are better or worse than their YPC depending on how consistent they are. IE, Barry was worse than his YPC stat because he could gain nothing on 3 carries and then bust a 50 yard run on the fourth. It also doesn't to take into account defenses played or the score, as has been said before. However, YPC is still the most reliable simple, readily available statistic for measuring an RBs worth, definitely much moreso than total yards. However, if it seems like I use that to form all of my opinions, I don't. I much prefer to use
DPAR and DVOA from Football Outsiders (of course I do, I work there). This takes into account a) RB consistency, b) Defenses played, and c) score of the game. (It's easier to get points on a run when you're ahead by 2 scores).
I think this is actually more of an indicator of what I've been saying - a great RB isn't worth as much as most people think.