Chiefs claim the top DVOA ranking despite loss

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We're on our way.

https://www.footballoutsiders.com/dv...6-dvoa-ratings

In a statistical metric based on play-by-play analysis rather than wins and losses, sometimes a team will rate better for a close loss than another team rates for a close win. That's what happened this week in the Football Outsiders DVOA ratings, and it was enough to knock the undefeated Los Angeles Rams out of the top spot. Instead, the Kansas City Chiefs ascend to No. 1 despite losing their first game to New England on Sunday night.

There are two big differences between the Chiefs and the Rams this year. The first is schedule strength. Kansas City's past schedule now ranks seventh by average DVOA of opponent, while the Rams' schedule ranks 22nd.

The second difference is special teams. Kansas City has had positive special teams value in five of six games, and the other game was -0.6%. Kansas City has more games with special teams DVOA over 25% than the entire rest of the league combined. The Chiefs are on pace to rank among the best special teams we've ever tracked.

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