N.F.L. Needs Fair Method for Recording Interception Statistics

On the final play in the first half of Sunday’s game between the Jets and the Patriots, Tom Brady threw a quick out to tight end Aaron Hernandez. Jets cornerback Antonio Cromartie intercepted the pass near the Patriots’ goal line and ran the ball back to the 41-yard-line as the clock expired.

This play depicted two flaws with pro football’s statistical bookkeeping.

Flaw 1: The interception went on Brady’s record, even though it occurred because Hernandez deflected the ball up in the air. It was a well-thrown pass that should have been caught. The interception should have gone on Hernandez’s record. In the way that a dropped pop fly in baseball is counted as an error for the fielder and not a hit against the pitcher, a tipped interception off a dropped pass should count against a receiver. This kind of detail is important for a fair accounting of the game.

Flaw 2: The interception was counted as a turnover, even though the ball did not change hands. By the time the play ended, the first half had expired.

Now I acknowledge there are a few holes in this second argument. Possession did technically change hands, as Cromartie had the ball with a chance to score. And if Hernandez had merely dropped the pass rather than tipped it to the defense, there might  have been enough time left on the clock for New England to kick a field goal. So there was a turnover element involved in this particular play.

That’s fine. The bigger point is that we should use this play as a gateway to the concept of turnovers that aren’t really turnovers. End-of-half interceptions, like desperation heaves, aren’t truly turnovers; the patterns of possession are not altered by the outcome of the play. Same goes for an interception on fourth down. The end result of that play is essentially no different than if the quarterback had thrown an incomplete pass or taken a sack. So why describe it as a turnover?

The whole idea of statistics is to find a mathematical representation of what happened in the game. As the Hernandez interception reminds us, every now and then, there are stats that are a mathematical misrepresentation. With a little attention to detail, the N.F.L. could correct the record.

Andy Benoit is an NFL analyst for CBSSports.com and founder of NFLTouchdown.com. He can be reached at andy.benoit@NFLTouchdown.com or @Andy_Benoit.