In fact, the headline for Graziano's piece is "Eagles' numbers don't lie." Even the SportsNation poll on the page has the Eagles well ahead of the three other teams (Packers, Patriots, Saints and there's an option for "other") with 43 percent of the total vote.
Graziano's first stat is that the Eagles led the league last year with 80 explosive plays - any play that gained at least 20 yards. Certainly, that should make the Eagles the most explosive team right there. However, Graziano knows that he must dig deeper than that. He has four main reasons why the Eagles are tops in this category.
1. Versatility - The Eagles did not have the most explosive run plays or the most explosive pass plays in 2010. However, no team exhibits the balance and the ability to execute in both areas like the Eagles. Even though the Eagles weren't first in either category, they were third in run plays and fourth in pass plays. Again, the Eagles were first in total explosive plays and have the ability to beat you in the air and on the ground.
2. Super-Explosiveness - If the 80 explosive plays weren't enough, Graziano notes that the Eagles had 21 plays of 40 yards or more (six on the ground and 15 in the air). Yet again, that number was tops in the NFL last season.
3. Cast of Characters - Graziano explains here that there isn't just one person who you can contain in this offense. Michael Vick had 48 explosive pass plays and eight of the team's explosive run plays. Also on the ground, LeSean McCoy and even Jerome (not James as is reads in the piece) Harrison can chip in (10 combined explosive runs between the pair). Through the air, Vick has DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin (combined 34 explosive pass plays) at his disposal.
4. Sustainability - The Eagles' ability to infuse explosive talent and youth has been remarkable. Jackson is only entering his fourth NFL season. McCoy and Maclin will be third-year vets in 2011. Vick is the oldest of the crew as he will be 31 at the start of the 2011 campaign. You can argue that the Eagles are only going to continue to get better in this category in the years to come.
As Graziano closes out his piece, he writes that essentially when it comes to debating the league's most explosive offense the proof is in the pudding.
"The numbers back it up," Graziano wrote.
