Two-point conversion rates typically hover around 50 percent and that has fueled a longstanding argument that it would be smarter to always attempt to get two points after a touchdown rather than kick the extra point. Sunday was a reminder of how that doesn’t always work out well.
The whole NFL sucked at 2-point conversions in Week 10
Just three of 12 two-point tries were converted Sunday.
Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
In an exciting battle between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Dallas Cowboys, there were six attempts at a two-point conversion, the second-most ever in an NFL game. None of them were successful, a first for any game with at least five attempts.
It wasn’t just the Steelers and Cowboys, either. The Seattle Seahawks rolled the dice late to try to go up two scores and couldn’t convert:
The Green Bay Packers and Tennessee Titans failed on back-to-back touchdown drives, making NFL teams successful on three of the 12 two-point conversion attempts from Sunday.
But even after the rough day for offenses trying to add two to the scoreboard, the NFL is collectively 34 of 63 in 2016. That’s 54 percent, meaning it’s still mathematically smarter to attempt a two-point conversion than kick an extra point, which are being made at a rate of 94.7 percent.
Good luck convincing Bill Belichick, and plenty of other coaches of winning teams, though. He was baffled at Pete Carroll’s decision to attempt a two-point conversion late in their Sunday Night Football contest:
The New England Patriots are one of seven teams that haven’t attempted a two-point conversion this season and were one of five teams that didn’t attempt one in all of 2015, too.
On Sunday, that looked like the wise path to take.
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