Defending the Pass: Using Player Tracking Data to Gain New Insights

Kevin Meers - Former Director of Research & Strategy, Cleveland Browns

 

Evan Kaplan - Research Specialist, ESPN

 

Brian Burke - Senior Analytics Specialist, ESPN

 

Domonique Foxworth - Writer & NFL Analyst, ESPN

 

Brian Macdonald (Moderator) - Director of Sports Analytics, ESPN

 

“You have to pass to set up the run.” A far cry from a generation ago, the NFL has experienced a notable trend towards passing over the past 40 years. The league is also collecting and using more detailed, granular data, such as player and ball location data, which has opened the door to countless new statistics, advanced metrics, and detailed analyses that can be leveraged to inform decisions at both the league and team level. This panel will focus on the intersection of these two trends, particularly how tracking data can be used to answer new questions about player performance and coaching strategies, and how they impact a team’s success at defending the pass.