Go here for the latest article on the average age of every team heading into free agency in 2013. This article was done right before the start of the 2012 season.
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| Random image that has nothing to do with this article... (Photo credit: www.davidnicolas.co.uk) |
As an overview of how I calculate these numbers, I do not exclude special teams players. For this article and going forward, that becomes important, as I also calculate the average ages of every offense and defense in the NFL.
I do not include practice squads or players on injured reserve. Practice squads are composed of younger players, and are probably about the same average age across the board. Including them would just increase the amount of work with no gain in information. The players on injured reserve, with the possible exception of one from each team under the new rules, will not have an impact on the active rosters for the entire season.
Now that we have an idea of what teams were looking back, it's time to look forward into the 2012 season and see where they are now.
Did the Pittsburgh Steelers get younger?
Which team is the youngest in the NFL?
This time, there is much more. Who has the youngest defense in the NFL, and the oldest offense?
The St. Louis Rams have the youngest team in the NFL, with an age of 25.3 years, and the youngest offense in the NFL, with an age of 25.22 years. The New England Patriots and Green Bay Packers have the youngest defenses in the NFL, with an age of 25 years.
On the other side of the average, the San Diego Chargers have the oldest team in the NFL with an age of 27.25 years. The Detroit Lions have the oldest offense in the NFL, at 28.46 years. The Atlanta Falcons have the oldest defense in the NFL at 27.21 years.
The Pittsburgh Steelers got younger, and are the 24th oldest team heading into the season. That's a big improvement from being the oldest.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers dropped to 9th youngest, still good, and the Giants are about the same, at 20th on the list. There are twelve teams that are older, not bad for the Super Bowl champs.
On another note, doing these rosters allowed me to calculate the average age on the NFL player. That average age for every player in the NFL is 26.21 years. Going forward, these are numbers we can look at to see if teams are trending towards the younger or older roster.
Where is your team at? Click the column headers to sort by that column. Rank and Team can't be sorted, that is generated automatically.
Average age of all NFL teams
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| Team | Average age | Offense age | Defense age | ◄Click to sort |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Louis Rams | 25.30 | 25.22 | 25.38 | |
| Philadelphia Eagles | 25.49 | 25.48 | 25.50 | |
| Minnesota Vikings | 25.60 | 25.52 | 25.69 | |
| Cleveland Browns | 25.61 | 25.86 | 25.35 | |
| Miami Dolphins | 25.63 | 25.60 | 25.68 | |
| Green Bay Packers | 25.66 | 26.30 | 25.00 | |
| Seattle Seahawks | 25.74 | 26.21 | 25.20 | |
| New England Patriots | 25.79 | 26.56 | 25.00 | |
| Kansas City Chiefs | 25.79 | 25.79 | 25.80 | |
| Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 25.79 | 26.33 | 25.23 | |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 25.81 | 25.69 | 25.96 | |
| Tennessee Titans | 25.85 | 26.63 | 25.04 | |
| Indianapolis Colts | 25.96 | 25.96 | 25.96 | |
| Dallas Cowboys | 26.00 | 26.15 | 25.84 | |
| Carolina Panthers | 26.04 | 26.21 | 25.84 | |
| Jacksonville Jaguars | 26.04 | 26.36 | 25.69 | |
| New York Jets | 26.21 | 25.68 | 26.80 | |
| New Orleans Saints | 26.38 | 26.93 | 25.71 | |
| New York Giants | 26.40 | 26.64 | 26.12 | |
| Houston Texans | 26.40 | 27.07 | 25.64 | |
| Baltimore Ravens | 26.43 | 26.37 | 26.50 | |
| Denver Broncos | 26.47 | 26.50 | 26.44 | |
| Washington Redskins | 26.49 | 26.17 | 26.88 | |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 26.57 | 26.21 | 27.00 | |
| Oakland Raiders | 26.60 | 26.55 | 26.67 | |
| Chicago Bears | 26.70 | 27.04 | 26.35 | |
| Buffalo Bills | 26.72 | 27.07 | 26.29 | |
| San Francisco 49ers | 26.85 | 27.00 | 26.67 | |
| Arizona Cardinals | 26.91 | 26.66 | 27.21 | |
| Atlanta Falcons | 26.98 | 26.79 | 27.21 | |
| Detroit Lions | 27.24 | 28.46 | 25.92 | |
| San Diego Chargers | 27.25 | 27.43 | 27.04 |
I am going to continue this effort at the end of the season, as by then rosters will change a little with injuries and trades, cuts and free agent signings. I am aware that there are other such lists out there on the net, but I also know that the average football fan wants more information.
That's what you'll continue to get here, not just an average age that seems to have left off the Special Teams without saying so. Since I am also calculating the ages of the offense and defense, don't tell me that a player like 42 year old Jason Hanson shouldn't be included in the Detroit Lions offense. I think even the average Lions fan can tell you that Hanson is the Lions all time leading scorer, with over 2,000 points. I think that tells me he must be included in the offense, along with the long snapper snapping the ball on field goal attempts.
I also feel the Punter must be included in the offense, it's all about field position. The ideal situation is to pin the opponent inside the five on punts, and the desired result would be a safety or excellent field position because of a defensive stop that leads to points.
If Special Teams are included all around, the results should be a wash long term, though short term one team will have a young kicker and one team will have an older kicker.
I think my readers expect more, and I'll continue to deliver more.
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