The Intelligence Index is our tried-and-tried formula to separate smart, efficient, well-coached teams from dumb, inefficient, poorly coached teams. It’s proven a remarkably effective formula for separating winners from losers. The Intelligence Index has also proven that smart teams are smart bets.
Intelligence is simply the difference between defensive efficiency, or what we call Bendability (yards surrendered for each point allowed), and offensive efficiency, or what we call Scoreability (yards needed for each point scored).
Bendability (Yards Per Point Allowed) – Scoreability (Yards Per Point Scored) = Intelligence
A high Bendability number is good. It means teams need to do a lot of work to score against you. They spin their wheels with minimal impact on the scoreboard. A low Scoreability number is good. It means you score points with minimal effort. The difference between these two numbers gives us an incredible gauge of a team's overall efficiency in all phases of the game.
| Rank | Team | Bendability | Scoreability | Intelligence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 = | Jacksonville Jaguars | 23.57 | 13.61 | 9.96 |
| 2 = | Minnesota Vikings | 20.30 | 12.98 | 7.32 |
| 3 = | San Francisco 49ers | 15.98 | 11.85 | 4.13 |
| 4 2 | Kansas City Chiefs | 16.51 | 13.97 | 2.54 |
| 5 5 | Cincinnati Bengals | 15.79 | 13.39 | 2.40 |
| 6 1 | Indianapolis Colts | 13.92 | 11.85 | 2.07 |
| 7 3 | Las Vegas Raiders | 14.61 | 12.71 | 1.90 |
| 8 1 | Dallas Cowboys | 14.54 | 12.72 | 1.82 |
| 9 3 | Denver Broncos | 15.65 | 13.87 | 1.78 |
| 10 1 | Buffalo Bills | 13.78 | 12.08 | 1.70 |
| 11 3 | Philadelphia Eagles | 15.93 | 14.25 | 1.68 |
| 12 4 | Detroit Lions | 13.66 | 12.01 | 1.65 |
| 13 5 | New York Giants | 15.42 | 14.14 | 1.28 |
| 14 1 | Carolina Panthers | 14.21 | 13.41 | 0.80 |
| 15 7 | Pittsburgh Steelers | 14.87 | 14.62 | 0.25 |
| 16 1 | Cleveland Browns | 14.91 | 14.71 | 0.20 |
| 17 2 | Baltimore Ravens | 13.68 | 13.50 | 0.18 |
| 18 = | New York Jets | 15.26 | 15.27 | -0.01 |
| 19 10 | Chicago Bears | 16.22 | 16.49 | -0.27 |
| 20 5 | Seattle Seahawks | 11.96 | 12.24 | -0.28 |
| 21 8 | New England Patriots | 15.76 | 16.93 | -1.17 |
| 22 5 | Houston Texans | 13.95 | 15.49 | -1.54 |
| 23 = | New Orleans Saints | 11.95 | 13.64 | -1.69 |
| 24 4 | Atlanta Falcons | 13.47 | 15.20 | -1.73 |
| 25 1 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 13.37 | 15.32 | -1.95 |
| 26 2 | Green Bay Packers | 13.78 | 15.93 | -2.15 |
| 27 1 | Washington Commanders | 11.76 | 14.23 | -2.47 |
| 28 7 | Arizona Cardinals | 11.22 | 13.94 | -2.72 |
| 29 1 | Los Angeles Chargers | 12.08 | 17.43 | -5.35 |
| 30 1 | Los Angeles Rams | 11.88 | 17.83 | -5.95 |
| 31 6 | Tennessee Titans | 15.22 | 21.24 | -6.02 |
| 32 = | Miami Dolphins | 12.49 | 20.01 | -7.52 |