The NFL has—quite literally—taken its lumps over the increased emphasis on roughing the passer calls.
But with the first quarter of the season in the books, the league has some news that may indicate overall health because of it.
The league’s research department said on Tuesday that quarterbacks are lighting it up at a record-setting pace. The 228 passing touchdowns through four weeks is the most in that span by far in the modern NFL era. The next closest season through four games was back in 2013 (205). We’ve had six and four touchdown performances from Patrick Mahomes, two four-touchdown performances from Ryan Fitzpatrick and an out-of-nowhere six-touchdown afternoon from Mitchell Trubisky last week, aiding in the surge.