Football Advanced Stats Explained

Most of the stats you'll find in search es on our Football Stathead site are straightforward stats from boxscores. However, there are a few calculated advanced stats not found on other websites that you might not be familiar with. Here's a quick rundown with definitions of those stats:

ANY/A - adjusted net yards per passing attempt: (pass yards + 20*(pass TD) - 45*(interceptions thrown) - sack yards)/(passing attempts + sacks). 

AV - approximate value. This is our attempt to put a single number on each player-season since 1960 so that we can (very approximately) compare across years and across positions. See this blog page for all the details. 

AY/A - adjusted yards per passing attempt: (pass yards + 20*(pass TD) - 45*(interceptions thrown))/(passing attempts). This stat was introduced, and the reasoning behind it thoroughly explained in a book called The Hidden Game of Football, by Bob Carroll, Pete Palmer, and John Thorn.

NY/A - net yards per passing attempt: (pass yards - sack yards)/(passing attempts + sacks)


Game-Winning Drives - QB must lead an offensive scoring drive in the 4th quarter or overtime that puts the winning team ahead for the last time.

4th Quarter Comebacks -QB must lead an offensive scoring drive in the 4th quarter, with the team trailing by one score, though not necessarily a drive to take the lead. Only games ending in a win or tie are included.


During the 2022 season, we introduced to Stathead a wide ranged of advanced tracking stats that were previously only available on the season and player pages at Pro-Football-Reference.com.

This update includes:

  • Passing stats that measure throwing distance, QB accuracy, pressure faced by the QB, and play types like RPOs, play action, and scrambles.
  • Rushing stats that measure yards before and after contact, as well as broken tackles
  • Receiving stats that measure yards before or after the catch, drops, ADOT, and passer rating when targeted
  • Defensive stats that measure QB pressures, hits, knockdowns, and more for pass rushers; coverage success for pass defenders; and missed tackles for all defenders

For more information on these advanced stats, which are compiled through game charting by SportRadar, please see this glossary page.