Baker Mayfield spearheaded the Buccaneers' third-down dominance: Tampa Bay particularly excelled in third-and-medium and third-and-long situations this past season.
The Ravens led the league in conversion rate on third-and-short: With Derrick Henry and Lamar Jackson in tow, Baltimore unsurprisingly carved up opposing defenses in third-and-short situations.
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Everything in football comes to a head on third down. It's the money down, and some of the top teams in the NFL make it a habit of bringing their best stuff to convert and keep the drive rolling. If you can consistently convert on third down, you’ll be one of the better offenses in the NFL and stand a better chance of winning.
We’re looking at the best teams from this past season at converting on all three third-down levels — third-and-short, third-and-medium and third-and-long — as well as the best offense overall on third down.
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1. Baltimore Ravens (79.7%)
The Ravens' offense was one of the best in the NFL across the board in 2024, and their success on third-and-short, especially relative to the rest of the league, is just one reminder. Defenses knew what was coming if the Ravens got into a third-and-short scenario, but they weren’t equipped to stop it. Led by the dynamic backfield of Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry, the Ravens made rushing in short-yardage situations their calling card.
Only the Chargers ran more on third-and-short than the Ravens (77.6%), who found the third-most success in the NFL on those plays (79.1%). Baltimore's success on third-and-short passing plays was at 75%, which led the league by a healthy margin. Todd Monken's play-calling was effective, but the Ravens often found ways to get Jackson under center and hand the ball off to Henry, who ran for 17 first-down conversions in 2024, earning a 90.0 PFF overall grade in the process.
2. Arizona Cardinals (70.7%)
The Cardinals' inclusion on this list might come as a surprise when considering the plentiful offensive talent in the NFL, but their attack quietly hummed in big spots last season. Like the Ravens, Arizona was one of the NFL’s most run-heavy teams on third-and-short, ranking sixth in run rate (61.1%).
Team PFF Offense Grade
Cardinals 87.4
Ravens 86.1
Lions 83.5
Chargers 80.2
Colts 79.4
The Cardinals were multiple in their approach. They didn’t lean heavily into putting quarterback Kyler Murray in the shotgun or under center on third-and-short, and they varied their run concepts. Having James Conner, who converted seven third-and-short rushing attempts and has consistently been one of the best power backs in the NFL in recent years, certainly helped. Arizona also created the fifth-most explosive plays on third-and-short. Not only did they move the chains in key moments, but they produced chunk plays.
3. Dallas Cowboys (69.5%)
The 2024 season was a mess in Dallas. The team finished with a 7-10 record and was resigned to mediocrity following a season-ending injury to quarterback Dak Prescott. Even when Prescott was healthy, the offense struggled and the defense was abhorrent. Still, the Cowboys were one of the best teams at converting in third-and-short scenarios.
Dallas ran on 57.4% of its third-and-short plays, the eighth-highest rate in the league, and 44% of those rushing plays were inside-zone runs. The offensive line is an athletic unit capable of creating movement at the line of scrimmage, and running backs Rico Dowdle and Ezekiel Elliott combined for 14 first-down conversions. The Cowboys also leaned into RPOs in short-yardage situations, with 22.2% of their third-and-short plays coming as run-pass options and 83.3% of those options turning into run plays. It was all about the work on the ground for the Cowboys.
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1. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (62.5%)
The 2024 season was a play-calling masterclass from former Buccaneers offensive coordinator Liam Coen. His offense earned an 82.2 PFF grade, while quarterback Baker Mayfield earned a career-high 85.9 PFF overall grade as he led the team to a 10-7 record and its fourth straight NFC South title. Tampa Bay's ability to keep drives alive on third-and-medium played a significant role. Like most teams in the NFL, the Buccaneers passed on the majority of their third-and-medium plays, but only the Lions ran the ball more often. However, Tampa Bay excelled in passing situations.
Mayfield completed 70.0% of his passes for 338 yards and six touchdowns in third-and-medium opportunities while averaging 8.4 yards per attempt. Despite playing in just five games, Chris Godwin led the Buccaneers in third-down receptions (five), but spreading the ball around the offense was a staple of the offense's success in 2024, as was its ability to convert on third-and-medium better than any other team.
2. Buffalo Bills (60.0%)
The Bills' offense excelled in 2024 with a more run-oriented approach, but their success in third-and-medium situations still largely hinged on Josh Allen‘s arm. Allen completed 75.9% of his pass attempts on third-and-medium for 303 yards and a touchdown, and his 10.4 yards per passing attempt was the highest average among quarterbacks.
Allen’s connection with Khalil Shakir on third down was key. Shakir tallied nine first-down receptions on third-and-medium, and his 90.3 PFF overall grade in those situations led all receivers in the NFL. The Bills utilized shifts and motion on 84.2% of those plays, the fifth-highest rate in the NFL, to create mismatches in coverage, put defensive players in conflict and get guys like Shakir out on the move early. It worked.
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3. Kansas City Chiefs (60.0%)
Looking at the top three teams in third-and-medium is an exercise in determining the best quarterbacks and coordinators in the NFL. Despite the Chiefs’ perceived struggles on offense, which were legitimate at times, they still managed to convert on their third-and-medium opportunities at the third-highest rate in the NFL.
Mahomes completed 68.9% of his third-and-medium attempts for 366 yards and six passing touchdowns, tied for the most scores in the league. His 81.9 PFF overall grade ranked seventh at the position. Though his arm created plenty of conversions, Mahomes also had the most scrambles on third down, a sign that his ability to create out of the pocket and use his legs to gain yards is very much alive and kicking. Wide receiver Xavier Worthy logged nine first-down conversions in third-and-medium opportunities, the second most in the NFL.
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1. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (36.4%)
Converting on third-and-long is one of the toughest tasks in football, but no one did it more than the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2024 — and even then, it was at a sub-40% clip. Liam Coen’s excellent play-calling played a significant part, but Baker Mayfield and the offense still executed to a high degree, keeping drives alive in the face of adversity.
Tampa Bay's offense was one of the best screen units in the NFL, running those plays at the second-highest rate on third-and-long (17.5%) to create space in the open field for the likes of Bucky Irving, who earned a 90.8 PFF overall grade in his rookie season. The Buccaneers rarely went deep on third-and-long, doing so at just a 9.3% rate. Mayfield often looked to Mike Evans, and the veteran receiver subsequently recorded seven first-down receptions on third-and-long.
Team EPA/Play
Lions 0.388
Buccaneers 0.260
Commanders 0.258
Jets 0.245
Bills 0.245
2. New York Jets (34.9%)
The Jets racked up 36 conversions on third-and-long in 2024, tied for the most in the NFL along with the Buccaneers. The offense underwhelmed for large stretches of the season, but it showed up in the toughest spots. Aaron Rodgers completed 61.0% of his third-and-long pass attempts for 674 yards, the second most in the NFL, and his willingness to air the ball out in those moments proved pivotal.
The Jets went deep on 20.5% of their third-and-long attempts, and Rodgers’ connection with Garrett Wilson, who tallied nine first-down conversions on third-and-long, and Allen Lazard, who had seven, was a driving force.
3. Detroit Lions (34.8%)
The Lions were one of the best offenses in the NFL, and also one of the best at converting in third-and-long opportunities. Ben Johnson’s play-calling fueled that success, and it helped to have Jared Goff, who earned a 64.6 PFF overall grade on third-and-long while throwing seven touchdowns. He was willing stand in the pocket and deliver strikes in the face of danger, always giving Detroit a chance to keep the chains moving.
Goff often looked to his star receiver, Amon-Ra St. Brown, on third-and-long. St. Brown caught 17 passes for 254 yards and four touchdowns, earning an 88.0 PFF overall grade while converting on more third-and-longs than any other receiver in the NFL. The Lions were also one of the best screen teams on those plays, as 14.6% of their third-and-long plays were screens.
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Tampa Bay Buccaneers (51.7%)
The Buccaneers were comfortably the best offense at converting on third down in 2024. The unit's cohesive nature, from Liam Coen’s play-calling to Baker Mayfield's high-level play to the consistency of the receivers and their ability to get open and make plays, contributed to their success. The Buccaneers' offense was a well-oiled unit.
Mayfield earned a 70.9 PFF overall grade on third down, and Tampa Bay created explosive plays on 18.4% of third-down plays. Defenses didn’t just need to worry about defending the chains; they constantly needed to be aware of the Buccaneers' willingness to break off a chunk play.