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After the Pittsburgh Steelers put up the most points in franchise history last season, Ben Roethlisberger told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on Sunday that the Steelers want to score 30 points in every game.
"We want to start fast and we want to be able to put 30 points on the board in every game,’’ said the Pro Bowl quarterback as he enters his 12th NFL season.
"That group in front of me is as good as any in the league, and as good as any I’ve ever had. It’s great.
"Then you look at outside receiver. Antonio Brown is as good as anybody in this league and arguably one of the greatest that I’ve played with. Just all around on offense, we have just a special group. It has a chance to be really good.
"There are a lot of young guys, kind of the unknown other than Antonio Brown. But they have as much potential and talent from top to bottom as we’ve had here in a long time. To me the sky is the limit for them."
Tony Romo, who is entering his 13th season, would probably say much the same thing about his offense. The 2014 Cowboys scored 467 points, the second highest total in franchise history (and 31 points more than the 2014 Steelers), but even with that points total, the Cowboys didn't reach the 30-point per game threshold.
Since realignment in 2002, and after the Greatest Show on Turf averaged more than 30 points per game for three consecutive years from 1999-2001, only 15 teams have averaged more than 30 points per game (which translates to 480 points per season).
| Year | Team | Points Scored | W/L Record |
| 2014 | Green Bay |
486 | 12-4 |
| 2014 | Denver | 482 | 12-4 |
| 2013 | Denver | 606 | 13-3 |
| 2012 | New England | 557 | 12-4 |
| 2012 | Denver | 481 | 13-3 |
| 2011 | Green Bay | 560 | 15-1 |
| 2011 | New Orleans | 547 | 13-3 |
| 2011 | New England | 513 | 13-3 |
| 2010 | New England | 518 | 14-2 |
| 2009 | New Orleans | 510 | 13-3 |
| 2007 | New England | 589 | 16-0 |
| 2006 | San Diego | 492 | 14-2 |
| 2004 | Indianapolis | 522 | 12-4 |
| 2004 | Kansas City | 483 | 7-9 |
| 2003 | Kansas City | 484 | 13-3 |
Of note, 14 of those 15 teams made the playoffs and their W/L records average out to about 13-3. If you're looking for a quick way to the playoffs, history suggests that consistently scoring 30 points would be a good place to start looking.
For many of the same reasons Roethlisberger quotes, the 30 points per game are entirely within range for the 2015 Cowboys. Last year's 467 points average out to 29.2 points per game, which means the Cowboys were 13 points scored away from reaching a 30 points per game average.
This year, the Cowboys are stacked on offense like seldom before: they have easily one of the top O-lines in the NFL; they have Pro Bowlers at WR and TE; Tony Romo is finally healthy and is coming off an MVP-level season; and we'll trust them to find a way of replacing DeMarco Murray's production. If the offense can get it together and perform up to its potential, there are not that many teams in the NFL that can keep pace with an offense that consistently puts up 30 points.
In the last seven regular season games of 2014, the Cowboys scored 30+ points in every game save for the Thanksgiving Day game against the Eagles.
Will they continue that streak and average 30+ points per game for the first time in franchise history in 2015? If they do, a playoff berth is almost a given.